Setting Net Flow Cisco

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS
Release 12.4T
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CONTENTS
Cisco IOS NetFlow Overview 1

Finding Feature Information 1
Information About Cisco IOS NetFlow 1
The NetFlow Application 2
NetFlow Benefits Monitoring Analysis and Planning Security and Accounting and Billing 2
NetFlow Cisco IOS Packaging Information 3
NetFlow Flows 3
NetFlow Main Cache Operation 4
NetFlow Data Capture 4
NetFlow Export Formats 4
NetFlow Operation Processing Order of NetFlow Features 5
NetFlow Preprocessing Features Filtering and Sampling 5
NetFlow Advanced Features and Services BGP Next Hop Multicast MPLS NetFlow Layer 2 6
NetFlow Postprocessing Features Aggregation Schemes and Export to Multiple Destinations 7
NetFlow MIBs 7
How to Configure Cisco IOS NetFlow 7
Configuration Examples for Cisco IOS NetFlow 8
Where to Go Next 8
Additional References 8
Glossary 10
Getting Started with Configuring Cisco IOS NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 13
Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 14
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 14
NetFlow Data Export 15
Information About Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 15
NetFlow Flows Key Fields 16
NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

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NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format 16

How to Configure NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 16
Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format 16
Verifying That NetFlow Is Operational and View NetFlow Statistics 18
Verifying That NetFlow Data Export Is Operational 21
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 21
Example Configuring Egress NetFlow Accounting 21
Example Configuring NetFlow Subinterface Support 22
Example Configuring NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations 22
Example Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export
Format 22
Example Configuring NetFlow for Analyzing PPPoE Session Traffic 23
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 25
Glossary 27
Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 29
Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 29
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 30
Information About Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 31
NetFlow Flows Key Fields 32
NetFlow Cache Management and Data Export 32
NetFlow Export Format Versions 9 8 5 and 1 33
Overview 34
Details 34
NetFlow Export Version Formats 34
NetFlow Export Packet Header Format 35
NetFlow Flow Record and Export Format Content Information 36
NetFlow Data Export Format Selection 40
NetFlow Version 9 Data Export Format 41

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Contents

Egress NetFlow Accounting Benefits NetFlow Accounting Simplified 46
NetFlow Subinterface Support Benefits Fine-Tuning Your Data Collection 48
NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations Benefits 48
NetFlow on a Distributed VIP Interface 48
How to Configure NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 48
Configuring NetFlow 48
Verifying that NetFlow Is Operational and Displaying NetFlow Statistics 50
Configuring NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format 52
Verifying that NetFlow Data Export Is Operational 55
Clearing NetFlow Statistics on the Router 56
Customizing the NetFlow Main Cache Parameters 57
NetFlow Cache Entry Management on a Routing Device 57
NetFlow Cache Size 58
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 61
Example Configuring Egress NetFlow Accounting 61
Example Configuring NetFlow Subinterface Support 61
NetFlow Subinterface Support for Ingress (Received) Traffic on a Subinterface 61
NetFlow SubInterface Support for Egress (Transmitted) Traffic on a Subinterface 61
Example Configuring NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations 62
Example Configuring NetFlow Version 5 Data Export 62
Example Configuring NetFlow Version 1 Data Export 63
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export 64
Glossary 66
Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches 69
Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches 69
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches 70
Information About Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches 71
NetFlow Aggregation Caches 71
NetFlow Cache Aggregation Benefits 71
NetFlow Cache Aggregation Schemes 71
NetFlow Aggregation Scheme Fields 73

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Contents
NetFlow AS Aggregation Scheme 75

NetFlow AS-ToS Aggregation Scheme 76
NetFlow Destination Prefix Aggregation Scheme 78
NetFlow Destination Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme 79
NetFlow Prefix Aggregation Scheme 81
NetFlow Prefix-Port Aggregation Scheme 82
NetFlow Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme 84
NetFlow Protocol Port Aggregation Scheme 86
NetFlow Protocol-Port-ToS Aggregation Scheme 87
NetFlow Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme 89
NetFlow Source Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme 90
NetFlow Data Export Format Versions 9 and 8 for NetFlow Aggregation Caches Overview 92
How to Configure NetFlow Aggregation Caches 92
Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches 92
Verifying the Aggregation Cache Configuration 96
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches 98
Configuring an AS Aggregation Cache Example 98
Configuring a Destination Prefix Aggregation Cache Example 99
Configuring a Prefix Aggregation Cache Example 99
Configuring a Protocol Port Aggregation Cache Example 99
Configuring a Source Prefix Aggregation Cache Example 100
Configuring an AS-ToS Aggregation Cache Example 100
Configuring a Prefix-ToS Aggregation Cache Example 100
Configuring the Minimum Mask of a Prefix Aggregation Scheme Example 101
Configuring the Minimum Mask of a Destination Prefix Aggregation Scheme Example 101
Configuring the Minimum Mask of a Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme Example 101
Configuring NetFlow Version 9 Data Export for Aggregation Caches Example 102
Configuring NetFlow Version 8 Data Export for Aggregation Caches Example 102
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches 104
Glossary 105
Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the Network Traffic to Track 107
Prerequisites for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track 108
Restrictions for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track 108

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Information About Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track 109
Roadmap Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the Network Traffic to Track 109
Filtering and Sampling of NetFlow Traffic 109
NetFlow Input Filters Flow Classification 111
Random Sampled NetFlow Sampling Mode 112
Random Sampled NetFlow The NetFlow Sampler 112
How to Configure NetFlow Filtering or Sampling 112
Configuring NetFlow Input Filters to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export 112
Creating a Class Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering 113
Creating a Sampler Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering 114
Creating a Class-Based Policy Containing NetFlow Sampling Actions 115
Applying a Policy Containing NetFlow Sampling Actions to an Interface 117
Troubleshooting Tips 118
Configuring Random Sampled NetFlow to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export 118
Defining a NetFlow Sampler Map 118
Applying a NetFlow Sampler Map to an Interface 119
Verifying the Configuration of Random Sampled NetFlow 120
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow Filtering and Sampling 122
Example Configuring NetFlow Input Filters to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export 122
Example Creating a Class Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering 122
Example Creating a Sampler Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering 123
Example Creating a Policy Containing NetFlow Sampling Actions 123
Example Applying a Policy to an Interface 123
Example Configuring Random Sampled NetFlow to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data
Export 124
Example Defining a NetFlow Sampler Map 124
Example Applying a NetFlow Sampler Map to an Interface 124
Feature Information for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track 126
Glossary 128
Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support for Accounting and Analysis 131
Prerequisites for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support 131
Restrictions for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support 132

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Information About NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support 132

NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support Benefits 132
NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support and NetFlow Aggregation 133
How to Configure NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support 133
Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Accounting 133
Verifying the Configuration 135
Configuration Examples for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support 137
Example Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Accounting 137
Feature Information for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support 138
Glossary 139
Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting and Analysis 141
Prerequisites for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting 141
Restrictions for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting 142
Information About Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting 142
MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Benefits Enhanced Network Monitoring and More
Accurate Accounting Statistics 142
MPLS VPN Flow Capture with MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting 143
How to Configure MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting 144
Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting 144
Verifying MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Configuration 145
Configuration Examples for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting 147
Enabling MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Example 147
Feature Information for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting 150
Glossary 151
Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow 153
Prerequisites for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow 153
Restrictions for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow 155
Information About Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow 156
MPLS-aware NetFlow Overview 156

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MPLS Label Stack 156

MPLS-aware NetFlow Capture of MPLS Labels 158
MPLS-aware NetFlow Display of MPLS Labels 159
Information Captured and Exported by MPLS-aware NetFlow 159
Full and Sampled MPLS-aware NetFlow Support 160
How to Configure MPLS-aware NetFlow 161
Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow on a Router 161
Configuring Sampling for MPLS-aware NetFlow 164
Verifying the NetFlow Sampler Configuration 165
Displaying MPLS-aware NetFlow Information on a Router 166
Configuration Examples for MPLS-aware NetFlow 168
Example Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow on a Router 169
Example Configuring Sampling for MPLS-aware NetFlow 170
Defining the NetFlow Sampler 170
Applying the NetFlow Sampler to an Interface 171
Feature Information for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow 173
Glossary 173
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting 177
Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting 177
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting 178
Information About Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting 178
NetFlow Multicast Benefits 178
Multicast Ingress and Multicast Egress Accounting 178
NetFlow Multicast Flow Records 179
How to Configure NetFlow Multicast Accounting 179
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Releases 12.4(12) 179
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Cisco IOS Releases Prior to 12.4(12) 181
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Egress Accounting 181
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Ingress Accounting 182

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Contents
Verifying the NetFlow Multicast Accounting Configuration 184

Configuration Examples for NetFlow Multicast Accounting 185
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Original Releases 185
Configuring NetFlow MC Accounting in Releases Prior to 12.2(33)SRB 186
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Egress Accounting Example 186
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Ingress Accounting Example 186
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting 188
Glossary 189
Configuring SNMP and using the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data 191
Prerequisites for Configuring SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data 191
Restrictions for Configuring SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data 192
Information About Configuring SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data 192
NetFlow MIB Feature Benefits 192
NetFlow MIB Overview 192
Terminology Used 193
Using SNMP and MIBs to Extract NetFlow Information 194
Objects That are Used by the NetFlow MIB 194
How to Configure SNMP and use the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data 194
Configuring the Router to use SNMP 195
Configuring Options for the Main Cache 196
Configuring Options for the Main Cache 198
Identifying the Interface Number to use for Enabling NetFlow with SNMP 199
Configuring NetFlow on an Interface 199
Configuring NetFlow on an Interface 201
Configuring the Destination-Prefix Aggregation Cache 201
Configuring the Destination-Prefix Aggregation Cache 203
Configuring NetFlow Export from the Main NetFlow Cache using the Version 9 Export
Format 205
Configuring NetFlow Export from the Main NetFlow Cache using the Version 9 Export
Format 207
Configuration Examples using SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data 208
Configuring the Minimum Mask for a Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme using SNMP
Example 209

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Configuring NetFlow Data Export for the Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme using SNMP
Example 209
Configuring a NetFlow Minimum Mask for a Prefix Aggregation Cache using SNMP Example 209
Using SNMP to Gather Flow Information From the Router Example 209
Feature Information for Configuring SNMP and using the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data 212
Glossary 212
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using Cisco IOS CLI Commands or SNMP Commands 215
Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers 215
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers 216
Information About Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers 216
Overview of the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers Feature 216
Benefits of the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers Feature 217
Cisco IOS Release 12.2(33)SXH on Cisco 6500 Series Switches 217
How to Configure NetFlow Top Talkers using Cisco IOS CLI Commands or SNMP Commands 217
Configuring SNMP Support on the Networking Device 218
Configuring Parameters for the NetFlow Main Cache 219
Configuring Parameters for the NetFlow Main Cache 221
Identifying the Interface Number to Use for Enabling NetFlow with SNMP 221
Configuring NetFlow on a Cisco 6500 Series Switch 222
Configuring NetFlow on a Cisco 6500 Series Switch 224
Configuring NetFlow on Cisco Routers 225
Configuring NetFlow on Cisco Routers 227
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers 227
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers 229
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria 230
NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Specified by CLI Commands 231
NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Specified by SNMP Commands 231
Configuring Source IP Address Top Talkers Match Criteria 233
Configuring Source IP Address Top Talkers Match Criteria 234
Verifying the NetFlow Top Talkers Configuration 235
Verifying the NetFlow Top Talkers Configuration 236
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Top Talkers 237
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Using SNMP Commands Example 237

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Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Using SNMP Commands Example 238
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using the Cisco IOS CLI or SNMP
Commands 240
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 243
Prerequisites for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 243
Information About NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 244
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring 244
Layer 2 Information Capture Using NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 246
Layer 2 MAC Address Fields 246
Layer 2 VLAN ID Fields 247
NBAR Data Export 256
Benefits of NBAR NetFlow Integration 256
How to Configure NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 256
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 257
Verifying NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 259
Restrictions 259
Configuring NBAR Support for NetFlow Exports 261
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 263
Example: Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 263
Example: Configuring NBAR Support for NetFlow Exports 277
Feature Information for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 278
Glossary 279
NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP 281
Prerequisites for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP 281
Restrictions for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP 281
Information About NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP 282
NetFlow Benefits 282
NetFlow Cisco IOS Packaging Information 283
Elements of a NetFlow Network Flow 283

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Contents
NetFlow Main Cache Operation 284

NetFlow Export Formats 284
NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP 285
How to Configure NetFlow Reliable Export with SCTP 289
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination 289
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination with Partial Reliability 290
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination with No Reliability 292
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination and One Backup Export
Destination 293
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination and One Backup Exp Dest
With Fail-Over Mode Backup 295
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for Two Export Destinations and Two Backup Export
Destinations 297
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Fully Reliable and One Partially Reliable Export
Destination 299
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for the NetFlow Source-Prefix Aggregation Cache 301
Prerequisites 302
SCTP Export for NetFlow Aggregation Caches 302
Verifying NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP 303
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP 306
Feature Information for NetFlow Reliable Transport Using SCTP 309
Glossary 310
Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow 313
Prerequisites for Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow 314
Information About Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow 314
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring 314
Layer 2 MAC Address Fields 320
Layer 2 VLAN ID Fields 322
NetFlow Top Talkers 326
Comparison of the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI and NetFlow Top Talkers Features 326
NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI 326

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NetFlow Top Talkers 329

Filtering and Sampling of NetFlow Traffic 329
NetFlow Input Filters Flow Classification 331
Random Sampled NetFlow Sampling Mode 332
Random Sampled NetFlow The NetFlow Sampler Map 332
How to Configure and Use NetFlow to Detect and Analyze Network Threats 332
Prerequisites 333
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 333
Verifying NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports 336
Restrictions 336
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Protocol Distribution 338
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Source IP Address Top Talkers
Sending ICMP Traffic 339
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Destination IP Address Top
Talkers Receiving ICMP Traffic 341
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers to Monitor Network Threats 343
Monitoring and Analyzing the NetFlow Top Talkers Flows 344
Configuring NetFlow Filtering and Sampling 347
Verify NetFlow Filtering and Sampling 353
Monitoring and Analyzing the Sampled and Filtered NetFlow Top Talkers Flows 353
Configuration Examples for Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow 355
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Sec Mon Exports to Capture Traffic From a Simulated
FTP Attack Example 355
Analyze an FTP DoS Attack Using the show ip cache verbose flow command Example 357
Analyze an FTP DoS Attack Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI Example 359
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Sec Mon Exports to Capture Traffic From a Simulated
ICMP Attack Example 361
Analyze an ICMP Ping DoS Attack Using the show ip cache verbose flow command
Example 363
Analyze an ICMP Ping DoS Attack Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI Example 365
Configure NetFlow Filtering and Sampling Example 366
Where to Go Next 367
Feature Information for Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow 369
Glossary 371

xiv
Cisco IOS NetFlow Overview
NetFlow is a Cisco IOS application that provides statistics on packets flowing through the router. It is
emerging as a primary network accounting and security technology. This module provides an overview of
the NetFlow application and advanced NetFlow features and services.
Finding Feature Information, page 1

Information About Cisco IOS NetFlow, page 1
How to Configure Cisco IOS NetFlow, page 7
Configuration Examples for Cisco IOS NetFlow, page 8
Where to Go Next, page 8
Additional References, page 8
Glossary, page 10
Finding Feature Information

Your software release may not support all the features documented in this module. For the latest feature
information and caveats, see the release notes for your platform and software release. To find information
about the features documented in this module, and to see a list of the releases in which each feature is
supported, see the Feature Information Table at the end of this document.
Use Cisco Feature Navigator to find information about platform support and Cisco software image support.
To access Cisco Feature Navigator, go to www.cisco.com/go/cfn. An account on Cisco.com is not required.
Information About Cisco IOS NetFlow

The NetFlow Application, page 2
NetFlow Benefits Monitoring Analysis and Planning Security and Accounting and Billing, page 2
NetFlow Cisco IOS Packaging Information, page 3
NetFlow Flows, page 3
NetFlow Main Cache Operation, page 4
NetFlow Data Capture, page 4
NetFlow Export Formats, page 4
NetFlow Operation Processing Order of NetFlow Features, page 5
NetFlow Preprocessing Features Filtering and Sampling, page 5
NetFlow Advanced Features and Services BGP Next Hop Multicast MPLS NetFlow Layer 2, page
6

1
The NetFlow Application
NetFlow Postprocessing Features Aggregation Schemes and Export to Multiple Destinations, page
7
NetFlow MIBs, page 7
The NetFlow Application

NetFlow is a Cisco IOS application that provides statistics on packets flowing through the routing devices
in the network. It is emerging as a primary network accounting and security technology.
NetFlow identifies packet flows for both ingress and egress IP packets. It does not involve any connection-
setup protocol, either between routers or to any other networking device or end station. NetFlow does not
require any change externally--either to the packets themselves or to any networking device. NetFlow is
completely transparent to the existing network, including end stations and application software and network
devices like LAN switches. Also, NetFlow capture and export are performed independently on each
internetworking device; NetFlow need not be operational on each router in the network.
NetFlow is supported on IP and IP encapsulated traffic over most interface types and encapsulations.
However, NetFlow does not support ATM LAN emulation (LANE) and does not support an Inter-Switch
Link (ISL)/virtual LAN (VLAN), ATM, or Frame Relay interfaces when more than one input access
control list (ACL) is used on the interface. Cisco 12000 IP Service Engine ATM line cards do not have this
restriction when more than one input ACL is used on the interface.
You can display and clear NetFlow statistics. NetFlow statistics consist of IP packet size distribution data,
IP flow switching cache information, and flow information. See the NetFlow Flows, page 3.
NetFlow Benefits Monitoring Analysis and Planning Security and

Accounting and Billing
NetFlow captures a rich set of traffic statistics. These traffic statistics include user, protocol, port, and type
of service (ToS) information that can be used for a wide variety of purposes such as network application
and user monitoring, network analysis and planning, security analysis, accounting and billing, traffic
engineering, and NetFlow data warehousing and data mining.
Network Application and User Monitoring

NetFlow data enables you to view detailed, time- and application-based usage of a network. This
information allows you to plan and allocate network and application resources, and provides for extensive
near real-time network monitoring capabilities. It can be used to display traffic patterns and application-
based views. NetFlow provides proactive problem detection and efficient troubleshooting, and it facilitates
rapid problem resolution. You can use NetFlow information to efficiently allocate network resources and to
detect and resolve potential security and policy violations.
Network Planning
NetFlow can capture data over a long period of time, which enables you to track and anticipate network
growth and plan upgrades. NetFlow service data can be used to optimize network planning, which includes
peering, backbone upgrade planning, and routing policy planning. It also enables you to minimize the total
cost of network operations while maximizing network performance, capacity, and reliability. NetFlow
detects unwanted WAN traffic, validates bandwidth and quality of service (QoS) usage, and enables the
analysis of new network applications. NetFlow offers valuable information that you can use to reduce the
cost of operating the network.

2
NetFlow Cisco IOS Packaging Information
Denial of Service and Security Analysis

You can use NetFlow data to identify and classify denial of service (DoS) attacks, viruses, and worms in
real-time. Changes in network behavior indicate anomalies that are clearly reflected in NetFlow data. The
data is also a valuable forensic tool that you can use to understand and replay the history of security
incidents.
>Accounting and Billing

NetFlow data provides fine-grained metering for highly flexible and detailed resource utilization
accounting. For example, flow data includes details such as IP addresses, packet and byte counts,
timestamps, type-of-service, and application ports. Service providers might utilize the information for
billing based on time-of-day, bandwidth usage, application usage, or quality of service. Enterprise
customers might utilize the information for departmental chargeback or cost allocation for resource
utilization.
Traffic Engineering
NetFlow provides autonomous system (AS) traffic engineering details. You can use NetFlow-captured
traffic data to understand source-to-destination traffic trends. This data can be used for load-balancing
traffic across alternate paths or for forwarding traffic to a preferred route. NetFlow can measure the amount
of traffic crossing peering or transit points to help you determine if a peering arrangement with other
service providers is fair and equitable.
>NetFlow Data Storage and Data Mining

NetFlow data (or derived information) can be stored for later retrieval and analysis in support of marketing
and customer service programs. For example, the data can be used to find out which applications and
services are being used by internal and external users and to target those users for improved service and
advertising. In addition, NetFlow data gives market researchers access to the who, what, where, and how
long information relevant to enterprises and service providers.

Cisco 7200/7500/7400/MGX/AS5800
Although NetFlow functionality is included in all software images for these platforms, you must purchase a
separate NetFlow feature license. NetFlow licenses are sold on a per-node basis.
>Other Routers
Use Cisco Feature Navigator to find information about platform support and Cisco IOS software image
support. Access Cisco Feature Navigator at http://www.cisco.com/go/fn . You must have an account on
Cisco.com. If you do not have an account or have forgotten your username or password, click Cancel at the
login dialog box and follow the instructions that appear.
NetFlow Flows
A NetFlow network flow is defined as a unidirectional stream of packets between a given source and
destination. The source and destination are each defined by a network-layer IP address and transport-layer
source and destination port numbers. Specifically, a flow is defined by the combination of the following
seven key fields:

3
NetFlow Main Cache Operation
Source IP address
Destination IP address
Source port number
Destination port number
Layer 3 protocol type
Type of service (ToS)
Input logical interface
These seven key fields define a unique flow. If a packet has one key field different from another packet, it
is considered to belong to another flow. A flow might also contain other accounting fields (such as the AS
number in the NetFlow export Version 5 flow format), depending on the export record version that you
configure. Flows are stored in the NetFlow cache.

The key components of NetFlow are the NetFlow cache that stores IP flow information, and the NetFlow
export or transport mechanism that sends NetFlow data to a network management collector, such as the
NetFlow Collection Engine. NetFlow operates by creating a NetFlow cache entry (a flow record) for each
active flow. NetFlow maintains a flow record within the cache for each active flow. Each flow record in the
NetFlow cache contains fields that can later be exported to a collection device, such as the NetFlow
Collection Engine.
NetFlow Data Capture

NetFlow captures data from ingress (incoming) and egress (outgoing) packets. NetFlow gathers data for the
following ingress IP packets:
IP-to-IP packets
IP-to-Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) packets
Frame Relay-terminated packets
ATM-terminated packets
NetFlow captures data for all egress (outgoing) packets through the use of the following features:
Egress NetFlow Accounting--NetFlow gathers data for all egress packets for IP traffic only.
NetFlow MPLS Egress--NetFlow gathers data for all egress MPLS-to-IP packets.
NetFlow Export Formats

NetFlow exports data in UDP datagrams in one of five formats: Version 9, Version 8, Version 7, Version 5,
or Version 1. Version 9 export format, the latest version, is the most flexible and extensive format. Version
1 was the initial NetFlow export format; Version 7 is supported only on certain platforms, and Version 8
only supports export from aggregation cache. (Versions 2 through 4 and Version 6 were either not released
or are not supported.)
Version 9--A flexible and extensible format, which provides the versatility needed for support of new
fields and record types. This format accommodates new NetFlow-supported technologies such as
multicast, Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS), and Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) next hop. The
distinguishing feature of the NetFlow Version 9 format is that it is template based. Templates provide
a means of extending the record format, a feature that should allow future enhancements to NetFlow
services without requiring concurrent changes to the basic flow-record format. Internet Protocol
Information Export (IPFIX) was based on the Version 9 export format.

4
NetFlow Operation Processing Order of NetFlow Features
Version 8--A format added to support data export from aggregation caches. Version 8 allows export
datagrams to contain a subset of the usual Version 5 export data, if that data is valid for a particular
aggregation cache scheme.
Version 7--A version supported on Catalyst 6000 series switches with a Multilayer Switch Feature
Card (MSFC) on CatOS Release 5.5(7) and later.
On Catalyst 6000 series switches with an MSFC, you can export using either the Version 7 or Version 8
format.
Information about and instructions for configuring NetFlow on Catalyst 6000 series switches is available in
the Catalyst 6500 Series Switches documentation.
Version 5--A version that adds BGP autonomous system (AS) information and flow sequence
numbers.
Version 1, the initially released export format, is rarely used today. Do not use the Version 1 export
format unless the legacy collection system you are using requires it. Use either the Version 9 export
format or the Version 5 export format for data export from the main cache.
For more information on a specific NetFlow data export format, see the "Configuring NetFlow and
NetFlow Data Export" module.
NetFlow Operation Processing Order of NetFlow Features

The NetFlow application supports features that you can set up to further analyze network traffic data.
NetFlow divides these features and services into the following three categories for processing:
Preprocessing features that allow you to collect subsets of your network traffic data for analysis.
Advanced features and services based on the flexible NetFlow Version 9 export format that allow you
to collect data on types of traffic in addition to IP traffic.
Postprocessing features that allow you to define fields that control how traffic data is exported.
You need to decide if you want to further analyze your network traffic. If you do want to do further
analysis, you need to make choices in two areas:
Do you want to customize or fine-tune the way that you collect NetFlow data? For example, you might
want to configure packet sampling, or packet filtering, or an aggregation scheme.
Do you want to collect and analyze data about the use of other Cisco IOS applications? For example,
you might want to configure NetFlow support for BGP next hop, multicast, MPLS, or IPv6.
Before you configure or enable an additional NetFlow feature or service, you need to understand the
prerequisites, restrictions, and key concepts that apply to each feature or service. Refer to the following
sections for information about and links to the NetFlow features and services:
NetFlow Preprocessing Features Filtering and Sampling

The table below briefly describes preprocessing features and indicates where you can find concept and task
information about each. You set up these features to select the subset of traffic of interest to you before
NetFlow processing begins.

5
NetFlow Advanced Features and Services BGP Next Hop Multicast MPLS NetFlow Layer 2
Table 1 NetFlow Preprocessing Features
Preprocessing Feature Brief Description Source for Concept and Task

Information
Packet sampling Sets up statistical sampling of See the "Using NetFlow Filtering
network traffic for traffic or Sampling to Select the
engineering or capacity planning Network Traffic to Track"
module.
Filtering Sets up a specific subset of See the "Using NetFlow Filtering

network traffic for class-based or Sampling to Select the
traffic analysis and monitoring Network Traffic to Track"
on-network or off-network traffic module.
NetFlow Advanced Features and Services BGP Next Hop Multicast MPLS
NetFlow Layer 2
The table below briefly describes advanced features and services supported by NetFlow and indicates
where you can find concept and task information about each. Configure these features and services to
collect and analyze NetFlow traffic statistics about them (features such as BGP Next Hop, multicast, and
MPLS).
Table 2 NetFlow Advanced Features and Services
Feature or Service Brief Description Source for Concept and Task

Information
BGP next hop support Sets up the export of BGP next See the "Configuring NetFlow
hop information for the purpose BGP Next Hop Support for
of measuring network traffic on a Accounting and Analysis"
per BGP next hop basis module.
Multicast support Sets up the capture of multicast- See the "Configuring NetFlow
specific data that allows you to Multicast Accounting" module.
get a complete multicast traffic
billing solution
MPLS support Sets up the capture of MPLS See the "Configuring MPLS-
traffic containing both IP and aware NetFlow" module.
non-IP packets for use in MPLS
network management, network
planning, and enterprise
accounting
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Sets up the capture of Layer 2 and See the "NetFlow Layer 2 and
Monitoring Exports Layer 3 fields for use in security Security Monitoring Exports"
monitoring, network module.
management, network planning,
and enterprise accounting

6
NetFlow Postprocessing Features Aggregation Schemes and Export to Multiple Destinations
How to Configure Cisco IOS NetFlow
NetFlow Postprocessing Features Aggregation Schemes and Export to

Multiple Destinations
The table below briefly describes postprocessing features and indicates where you can find concept and
task information about each. You configure these features to set up the export of NetFlow data.
Table 3 NetFlow Postprocessing Features
Postprocessing Features Brief Description Source for Concept and Task

Information
Aggregation schemes Sets up extra aggregation caches "Configuring NetFlow
with different combinations of Aggregation Caches"
fields that determine which
traditional flows are grouped
together and collected when a
flow expires from the main cache
Export to multiple destinations Sets up identical streams of "Configuring NetFlow and

NetFlow data to be sent to NetFlow Data Export"
multiple hosts
NetFlow MIBs
The NetFlow MIB and the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers features provide real time access to NetFlow
cache information. These feature do not require a collector to obtain NetFlow data. This allows smaller
enterprises to collect NetFlow data.
With the NetFlow MIB feature, you can access in real time the system information that is stored in the
NetFlow cache by utilizing a MIB implementation based on the Simple Network Management Protocol
(SNMP). This information is accessed by get and set commands entered on the network management
system (NMS) workstation for which SNMP has been implemented. The NetFlow MIB feature provides
MIB objects that allow you to monitor cache flow information, the current NetFlow configuration, and
statistics. For details about the NetFlow MIB, see the "Configuring SNMP and using the NetFlow MIB to
Monitor NetFlow Data" module.
The NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers feature uses NetFlow functionality to obtain information regarding
heaviest traffic patterns and most-used applications in the network. You can use this feature for security
monitoring or accounting purposes for top talkers, and matching and identifying addresses for key users of
the network. You configure the criteria by which flows from the NetFlow cache are sorted and placed in a
special cache. The flows that are displayed by this feature are known as "top talkers." For details about the
NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers, see the "Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using Cisco IOS CLI
Commands or SNMP Commands" module.
How to Configure Cisco IOS NetFlow

There are no tasks for the "Cisco IOS NetFlow Overview" module.
See the "Additional References" section for links to configuration information for NetFlow features and
services.

7
Configuration Examples for Cisco IOS NetFlow
Configuration Examples for Cisco IOS NetFlow

There are no configuration examples for the "Cisco IOS NetFlow Overview" module.
See the "Additional References" section for links to configuration information for NetFlow features and
services.
Where to Go Next
To configure basic NetFlow, refer to the "Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export" module. See the
"Additional References" section for links to configuration information about additional NetFlow features
and services.
Additional References
Related Documents
Related Topic Document Title

Overview of Cisco IOS NetFlow "Cisco IOS NetFlow Overview"
The minimum information about and tasks required "Getting Started with Configuring NetFlow and
for configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export NetFlow Data Export"
Tasks for configuring NetFlow to capture and "Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export"
export network traffic data
Tasks for configuring Configuring MPLS Aware Configuring MPLS Aware NetFlow
NetFlow
Tasks for configuring MPLS egress NetFlow Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting
accounting and Analysis
Tasks for configuring NetFlow input filters "Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the
Network Traffic to Track"
Tasks for configuring Random Sampled NetFlow "Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the
Tasks for configuring NetFlow aggregation caches "Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches"
Tasks for configuring NetFlow BGP next hop "Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support for
support Accounting and Analysis"
Tasks for configuring NetFlow multicast support "Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting"
Tasks for detecting and analyzing network threats Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With
with NetFlow NetFlow

8

Tasks for configuring NetFlow Reliable Export NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP
With SCTP
Tasks for configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and "NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring
Security Monitoring Exports Exports"
Tasks for configuring the SNMP NetFlow MIB "Configuring SNMP and using the NetFlow MIB to
Monitor NetFlow Data"
Tasks for configuring the NetFlow MIB and Top "Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using Cisco
Talkers feature IOS CLI Commands or SNMP Commands"
Information for installing, starting, and configuring "Cisco CNS NetFlow Collection Engine
the CNS NetFlow Collection Engine Documentation"
Standards
Standards Title
No new or modified standards are supported by this --
feature, and support for existing standards has not
been modified by this feature.
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

No new or modified MIBs are supported by this To locate and download MIBs for selected
feature, and support for existing MIBs has not been platforms, Cisco IOS releases, and feature sets, use
modified by this feature. Cisco MIB Locator found at the following URL:
http://www.cisco.com/go/mibs
RFCs
RFCs Title
RFC 2460 Internet Protocol, Version 6 (IPv6) Specification
RFC 3954 Cisco Systems NetFlow Services Export Version 9

9
Glossary
Technical Assistance
Description Link
The Cisco Technical Support website contains http://www.cisco.com/techsupport
thousands of pages of searchable technical content,
including links to products, technologies, solutions,
technical tips, and tools. Registered Cisco.com
users can log in from this page to access even more
content.
Glossary
AS --autonomous system. A collection of networks under a common administration sharing a common
routing strategy. Autonomous systems are subdivided into areas. An autonomous system must be assigned
a unique 16-bit number by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA).
BGP --Border Gateway Protocol. An interdomain routing protocol that replaces Exterior Gateway Protocol
(EGP). A BGP system exchanges reachability information with other BGP systems. BGP is defined by
RFC 1163.
BGP next hop --IP address of the next hop to be used to reach a certain destination.
flow --(NetFlow) A set of packets with the same source IP address, destination IP address, protocol, source/
destination ports, and type-of-service, and the same interface on which the flow is monitored. Ingress flows
are associated with the input interface, and egress flows are associated with the output interface.
IPv6 --IP Version 6. Replacement for the current version of IP (Version 4). IPv6 includes support for flow
ID in the packet header, which can be used to identify flows. Formerly called IPng (next generation).
ISL --Inter-Switch Link. Cisco-proprietary protocol that maintains VLAN information as traffic flows
between switches and routers.
MPLS --Multiprotocol Label Switching. An emerging industry standard for the forwarding of packets
along normally routed paths (sometimes called MPLS hop-by-hop forwarding).
multicast --When single packets are copied by the network and sent to a specific subset of network
addresses, they are said to be multicast. These addresses are specified in the Destination Address field.
NetFlow --A Cisco IOS application that provides statistics on packets flowing through the routing devices
in the network. It is emerging as a primary network accounting and security technology.
NetFlow aggregation --A NetFlow feature that lets you summarize NetFlow export data on an IOS router
before the data is exported to a NetFlow data collection system such as the NetFlow Collection Engine.
This feature lowers bandwidth requirements for NetFlow export data and reduces platform requirements for
NetFlow data collection devices.
NetFlow Collection Engine (formerly NetFlow FlowCollector)--Cisco application that is used with
NetFlow on Cisco routers and Catalyst series switches. The NetFlow Collection Engine collects packets
from the router or switch that is running NetFlow and decodes, aggregates, and stores them. You can
generate reports on various aggregations that can be set up on the NetFlow Collection Engine.
NetFlow V9 --NetFlow export format Version 9. A flexible and extensible means for carrying NetFlow
records from a network node to a collector. NetFlow Version 9 has definable record types and is self-
describing for easier NetFlow Collection Engine configuration.
QoS --quality of service. A measure of performance for a transmission system that reflects the systems
transmission quality and service availability.

10
traffic engineering --Techniques and processes that cause routed traffic to travel through the network on a
path other than the one that would have been chosen if standard routing methods were used.
VLAN --virtual LAN. Group of devices on one or more LANs that are configured (by management
software) so that they can communicate as if they were attached to the same wire, when in fact they are
located on a number of different LAN segments. Because VLANs are based on logical instead of physical
connections, they are extremely flexible.
Cisco and the Cisco logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its affiliates in the U.S.
and other countries. To view a list of Cisco trademarks, go to this URL: www.cisco.com/go/trademarks.
Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner
does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company. (1110R)
Any Internet Protocol (IP) addresses and phone numbers used in this document are not intended to be
actual addresses and phone numbers. Any examples, command display output, network topology diagrams,
and other figures included in the document are shown for illustrative purposes only. Any use of actual IP
addresses or phone numbers in illustrative content is unintentional and coincidental.

11
NetFlow MIBs

12
Getting Started with Configuring Cisco IOS
NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
This module contains the minimum amount of information about and instructions necessary for
configuring NetFlow to capture and export network traffic data. This module is intended to help you get
started using NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export as quickly as possible. If you want more detailed
information about this feature and instructions for configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, please
refer to Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export.
NetFlow capture and export are performed independently on each internetworking device on which
NetFlow is enabled. NetFlow need not be operational on each router in the network.
NetFlow is a Cisco IOS application that provides statistics on packets flowing through the router. NetFlow
is emerging as a primary network accounting and security technology.

Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 14
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 14
Information About Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 15
How to Configure NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 16
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 21
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 25
Glossary, page 27


13
Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data

Export
Before you enable NetFlow:
Configure the router for IP routing.
Ensure that one of the following is enabled on your router, and on the interfaces that you want to
configure NetFlow on: Cisco Express Forwarding (CEF), distributed CEF, or fast switching.
Understand the resources required on your router because NetFlow consumes additional memory and
CPU resources.
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data

Export
NetFlow Data Export, page 15

NetFlow consumes additional memory. If you have memory constraints, you might want to preset the size
of the NetFlow cache so that it contains a smaller number of entries. The default cache size depends on the
platform. For example, the default cache size for the Cisco 7500 router is 65536 (64K) entries.
Memory Impact
During times of heavy traffic, the additional flows can fill up the global flow hash table. If you need to
increase the size of the global flow hash table, increase the memory of the router.
Cisco IOS Releases 12.2(14)S, 12.0(22)S, or 12.2(15)T

If your router is running a version of Cisco IOS prior to releases 12.2(14)S, 12.0(22)S, or 12.2(15)T, the ip
route-cache flow command is used to enable NetFlow on an interface.
If your router is running Cisco IOS release 12.2(14)S, 12.0(22)S, 12.2(15)T, or later, the ip flow ingress
command is used to enable NetFlow on an interface.
Egress NetFlow Accounting in Cisco IOS 12.3T Releases, 12.3(11)T, or Later

The Egress NetFlow Accounting feature captures NetFlow statistics for IP traffic only. MPLS statistics are
not captured. The MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature can be used on a provider edge (PE) router to
capture IP traffic flow information for egress IP packets that arrived at the router as MPLS packets and
underwent label disposition.
Egress NetFlow accounting might adversely affect network performance because of the additional
accounting-related computation that occurs in the traffic-forwarding path of the router.
Locally generated traffic (traffic that is generated by the router on which the Egress NetFlow Accounting
feature is configured) is not counted as flow traffic for the Egress NetFlow Accounting feature.

14
NetFlow Data Export
Information About Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
Note In Cisco IOS 12.2S releases, egress NetFlow captures either IPv4 packets or MPLS packets as they leave
the router.
The Egress NetFlow Accounting feature counts CEF-switched packets only. Process-switched transit
packets are not counted.
NetFlow Data Export

Restrictions for NetFlow Version 9 Data Export
Backward compatibility--Version 9 is not backward-compatible with Version 5 or Version 8. If you
need Version 5 or Version 8, you must configure it.
Export bandwidth--Export bandwidth use increases for Version 9 (because of template flowsets)
versus Version 5. The increase in bandwidth usage versus Version 5 varies with the frequency with
which template flowsets are sent. The default is to resend templates every 20 packets, which has a
bandwidth cost of about 4 percent. If necessary, you can lower the resend rate with the ip flow-export
template refresh-rate packets command.
Performance impact--Version 9 slightly decreases overall performance, because generating and
maintaining valid template flowsets require additional processing.
Information About Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data

Export
NetFlow Flows Key Fields, page 16
NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format, page 16

NetFlow captures data from ingress (incoming) and egress (outgoing) packets. NetFlow gathers statistics
for the following ingress IP packets:
IP-to-IP packets
Egress NetFlow Accounting--NetFlow gathers statistics for all egress packets for IP traffic only.
NetFlow MPLS Egress--NetFlow gathers statistics for all egress MPLS-to-IP packets.

15
NetFlow Flows Key Fields
How to Configure NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export

A network flow is identified as a unidirectional stream of packets between a given source and destination--
both are defined by a network-layer IP address and by transport-layer source and destination port numbers.
Specifically, a flow is identified as the combination of the following key fields:
Source IP address
Source port number
is considered to belong to another flow. A flow might contain other accounting fields (such as the AS
number in the NetFlow export Version 5 flow format) that depend on the export record version that you
configure. Flows are stored in the NetFlow cache.
NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format

NetFlow Data Export format Version 9 is a flexible and extensible format, which provides the versatility
needed for support of new fields and record types. This format accommodates new NetFlow-supported
technologies such as Multicast, Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS), and Border Gateway Protocol
(BGP) next hop. The Version 9 export format enables you to use the same version for main and aggregation
caches, and the format is extendable, so you can use the same export format with future features.

Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format, page 16
Verifying That NetFlow Is Operational and View NetFlow Statistics, page 18
Verifying That NetFlow Data Export Is Operational, page 21
Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export
Format
Perform this task to configure NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export using the Version 9 export format.

16
Getting Started with Configuring Cisco IOS NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
2. configure terminal
3. ip flow-export destination {ip-address | hostname} udp-port
4. Repeat Step 3 once to configure a second NetFlow export destination.
5. ip flow-export version 9
6. interface interface-type interface-number
7. ip flow {ingress | egress}
8. exit
9. Repeat Steps 6 through 8 to enable NetFlow on other interfaces
10. end
DETAILED STEPS
Command or Action Purpose

Step 1 enable (Required) Enables privileged EXEC mode.
Enter your password if prompted.
Example:
Router> enable
Step 2 configure terminal (Required) Enters global configuration mode.
Example:
Router# configure terminal
Step 3 ip flow-export destination {ip-address | (Optional) IP address or hostname of the workstation to which you want
hostname} udp-port to send the NetFlow information and the number of the UDP port on
which the workstation is listening for this input.
Note The workstation is running an application such as NetFlow
Example: Collection Engine (NFC) that is used to analyze the exported data.
Router(config)# ip flow-export
destination 172.16.10.2 99
Step 4 Repeat Step 3 once to configure a second (Optional) You can configure a maximum of two export destinations for
NetFlow export destination. NetFlow.

17
Verifying That NetFlow Is Operational and View NetFlow Statistics

Step 5 ip flow-export version 9 (Optional) Enables the export of information in NetFlow cache entries.
The version 9keyword specifies that the export packet uses the
Version 9 format.
Example:
Caution Entering this command on a Cisco 12000 Series Internet Router
version 9 causes packet forwarding to stop for a few seconds while
NetFlow reloads the route processor and line card CEF tables.
To avoid interruption of service to a live network, apply this
command during a change window, or include it in the startup-
config file to be executed during a router reboot.
Step 6 interface interface-type interface-number (Required) Specifies the interface that you want to enable NetFlow on
and enters interface configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config)# interface ethernet 0/0
Step 7 ip flow {ingress | egress} (Required) Enables NetFlow on the interface.

ingress --Captures traffic that is being received by the interface.
Example: egress --Captures traffic that is being transmitted by the interface.
Router(config-if)# ip flow ingress
Step 8 exit (Optional) Exits interface configuration mode and returns to global
configuration mode.
Note You only need to use this command if you want to enable NetFlow
Example: on another interface.
Router(config-if)# exit
Step 9 Repeat Steps 6 through 8 to enable NetFlow (Optional) --

on other interfaces
Step 10 end (Required) Exits the current configuration mode and returns to privileged
EXEC mode.
Example:
Router(config-if)# end
Verifying That NetFlow Is Operational and View NetFlow Statistics

To verify that NetFlow is working properly, perform this optional task.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip flow interface
2. show ip cache flow
3. show ip cache verbose flow

18
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 show ip flow interface

Use this command to display the NetFlow configuration for an interface. The following is sample output from this
command:
Example:
Router# show ip flow interface

Ethernet0/0
ip flow ingress
Step 2 show ip cache flow
Use this command to verify that NetFlow is operational and to display a summary of the NetFlow statistics. The
following is sample output from this command:
Example:
Router# show ip cache flow

IP packet size distribution (1103746 total packets):
1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.249 .694 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .027 .000 .027 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
IP Flow Switching Cache, 278544 bytes
35 active, 4061 inactive, 980 added
2921778 ager polls, 0 flow alloc failures
Active flows timeout in 30 minutes
Inactive flows timeout in 15 seconds
IP Sub Flow Cache, 21640 bytes
0 active, 1024 inactive, 0 added, 0 added to flow
0 alloc failures, 0 force free
1 chunk, 1 chunk added
last clearing of statistics never
Protocol Total Flows Packets Bytes Packets Active(Sec) Idle(Sec)
-------- Flows /Sec /Flow /Pkt /Sec /Flow /Flow
TCP-FTP 108 0.0 1133 40 2.4 1799.6 0.9
TCP-FTPD 108 0.0 1133 40 2.4 1799.6 0.9
TCP-WWW 54 0.0 1133 40 1.2 1799.6 0.8
TCP-SMTP 54 0.0 1133 40 1.2 1799.6 0.8
TCP-BGP 27 0.0 1133 40 0.6 1799.6 0.7
TCP-NNTP 27 0.0 1133 40 0.6 1799.6 0.7
TCP-other 297 0.0 1133 40 6.8 1799.7 0.8
UDP-TFTP 27 0.0 1133 28 0.6 1799.6 1.0
UDP-other 108 0.0 1417 28 3.1 1799.6 0.9
ICMP 135 0.0 1133 427 3.1 1799.6 0.8
Total: 945 0.0 1166 91 22.4 1799.6 0.8
SrcIf SrcIPaddress DstIf DstIPaddress Pr SrcP DstP Pkts
Et0/0 192.168.67.6 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.200 01 0000 0C01 51
Et0/0 10.10.18.1 Null 172.16.11.5 11 0043 0043 51
Et0/0 10.10.18.1 Null 172.16.11.5 11 0045 0045 51
Et0/0 10.234.53.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 0000 0800 51
Et0/0 10.10.19.1 Null 172.16.11.6 11 0044 0044 51
Et0/0 10.10.19.1 Null 172.16.11.6 11 00A2 00A2 51
Et0/0 192.168.87.200 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 0014 0014 50
Et0/0 192.168.87.200 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 0015 0015 52
.
.
.
Et0/0 172.16.1.84 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.19 06 0087 0087 50
Et0/0 172.16.1.84 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.19 06 0050 0050 51
Et0/0 172.16.1.85 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.20 06 0089 0089 49
Et0/0 172.16.1.85 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.20 06 0050 0050 50

19
Et0/0 10.251.10.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 0000 0800 51

Et0/0 10.162.37.71 Null 172.16.11.3 06 027C 027C 49
Step 3 show ip cache verbose flow
Use this command to verify that NetFlow is operational and to display a detailed summary of the NetFlow statistics.
The following is sample output from this command:
Example:
Router# show ip cache verbose flow

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.249 .694 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .027 .000 .027 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
TCP-FTP 108 0.0 1133 40 2.4 1799.6 0.9
TCP-FTPD 108 0.0 1133 40 2.4 1799.6 0.9
TCP-WWW 54 0.0 1133 40 1.2 1799.6 0.8
TCP-SMTP 54 0.0 1133 40 1.2 1799.6 0.8
TCP-BGP 27 0.0 1133 40 0.6 1799.6 0.7
TCP-NNTP 27 0.0 1133 40 0.6 1799.6 0.7
TCP-other 297 0.0 1133 40 6.6 1799.7 0.8
UDP-TFTP 27 0.0 1133 28 0.6 1799.6 1.0
UDP-other 108 0.0 1417 28 3.0 1799.6 0.9
ICMP 135 0.0 1133 427 3.0 1799.6 0.8
Total: 945 0.0 1166 91 21.9 1799.6 0.8
SrcIf SrcIPaddress DstIf DstIPaddress Pr TOS Flgs Pkts
Port Msk AS Port Msk AS NextHop B/Pk Active
Et0/0 192.168.67.6 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.200 01 00 10 799
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 1258.1
Et0/0 10.10.18.1 Null 172.16.11.5 11 00 10 799
0043 /0 0 0043 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 1258.0
Et0/0 10.10.18.1 Null 172.16.11.5 11 00 10 799
0045 /0 0 0045 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 1258.0
Et0/0 10.234.53.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 799
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 1258.1
Et0/0 10.10.19.1 Null 172.16.11.6 11 00 10 799
0044 /0 0 0044 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 1258.1
.
.
.
Et0/0 172.16.1.84 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.19 06 00 00 799
0087 /0 0 0087 /0 0 0.0.0.0 40 1258.1
Et0/0 172.16.1.84 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.19 06 00 00 799
0050 /0 0 0050 /0 0 0.0.0.0 40 1258.0
Et0/0 172.16.1.85 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.20 06 00 00 798
0089 /0 0 0089 /0 0 0.0.0.0 40 1256.5
Et0/0 172.16.1.85 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.20 06 00 00 799
0050 /0 0 0050 /0 0 0.0.0.0 40 1258.0
Et0/0 10.251.10.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 799
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 1500 1258.1
Et0/0 10.162.37.71 Null 172.16.11.3 06 00 00 798
027C /0 0 027C /0 0 0.0.0.0 40 1256.4

20
Verifying That NetFlow Data Export Is Operational
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
Verifying That NetFlow Data Export Is Operational

To verify that NetFlow data export is operational and to view the statistics for NetFlow data export perform
the step in this optional task.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip flow export
DETAILED STEPS
show ip flow export

Use this command to display the statistics for the NetFlow data export, including statistics for the main cache and for
all other enabled caches. The following is sample output from this command:
Example:
Router# show ip flow export

Flow export v9 is enabled for main cache
Exporting flows to 172.16.10.2 (99)
Exporting using source interface Ethernet0/0
Version 9 flow records
0 flows exported in 0 udp datagrams
0 flows failed due to lack of export packet
0 export packets were sent up to process level
0 export packets were dropped due to no fib
0 export packets were dropped due to adjacency issues
0 export packets were dropped due to fragmentation failures
0 export packets were dropped due to encapsulation fixup failures
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow

Data Export
Example Configuring Egress NetFlow Accounting, page 21
Example Configuring NetFlow Subinterface Support, page 22
Example Configuring NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations, page 22
Example Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format, page
22
Example Configuring NetFlow for Analyzing PPPoE Session Traffic, page 23
Example Configuring Egress NetFlow Accounting

The following example shows how to configure Egress NetFlow Accounting:
configure terminal
!
interface ethernet 0/0

21
Example Configuring NetFlow Subinterface Support
ip flow egress
!

NetFlow Subinterface Support For Ingress (Received) Traffic On a Subinterface
configure terminal
!
interface ethernet 0/0.1
ip flow ingress
!
NetFlow SubInterface Support For Egress (Transmitted) Traffic On a Subinterface
configure terminal
!
ip flow egress
!
Note NetFlow performs additional checks for the status of each subinterface that requires more CPU processing
time and bandwidth. If you have several subinterfaces configured and you want to configure NetFlow data
capture on all of them, we recommend that you configure NetFlow on the main interface instead of on the
individual subinterfaces.
Example Configuring NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations

The following example shows how to configure NetFlow multiple export destinations:
configure terminal
!
ip flow-export destination 10.10.10.10 9991
!
Note You can configure a maximum of two export destinations for the main cache and for each aggregation
cache.
Example Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9
Export Format
The following example shows how to configure NetFlow and NetFlow data export using the Version 9
export format:
configure terminal
!
ip flow-export version 9
!

22
Example Configuring NetFlow for Analyzing PPPoE Session Traffic
Example Configuring NetFlow for Analyzing PPPoE Session Traffic

If you want to obtain accurate NetFlow traffic statistics for PPPoE sessions, you must configure NetFlow
on the virtual-template interface, not on the physical interface that is configured with VLAN encapsulation.
For example, if you configure NetFlow on the physical interface that is configured for VLAN
encapsulation as shown in the following configuration, the NetFlow traffic statistics will not be an accurate
representation of the traffic on the PPPoE sessions.
!
interface GigabitEthernet2/0/0.10
encapsulation dot1Q 10
ip flow egress
pppoe enable
The following example shows how to configure egress NetFlow on a virtual template interface so that you
can accurately analyze the packet size distribution statistics of the traffic that the router is sending to the
end user over the PPoE session:
interface Virtual-Template 1
ip unnumbered ethernet 0
encapsulation ppp
ip flow egress
The following display output from the show ip cache flow command shows that this PPPoE session traffic
is comprised primarily of 1536-byte packets.

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .000 .000 .999 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
Related Documents

Cisco IOS commands Cisco IOS Master Commands List, All Releases
Overview of Cisco IOS NetFlow Cisco IOS NetFlow Overview
Tasks for configuring NetFlow to capture and Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
NetFlow
Tasks for configuring NetFlow input filters Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the
Network Traffic to Track

23

Tasks for configuring random sampled NetFlow Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the
Tasks for configuring NetFlow aggregation caches Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches
Tasks for configuring NetFlow BGP next hop Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support for
support Accounting and Analysis
Tasks for configuring NetFlow multicast support Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting
With SCTP
Tasks for configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
Security Monitoring Exports
Tasks for configuring the SNMP NetFlow MIB Configuring SNMP and using the NetFlow MIB to
Monitor NetFlow Data
Tasks for configuring the NetFlow MIB and Top Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using Cisco IOS
Talkers feature CLI Commands or SNMP Commands
Information for installing, starting, and configuring Cisco CNS NetFlow Collection Engine
the CNS NetFlow Collection Engine Documentation
Configuration commands for NetFlow Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference
Standards
Standards Title
No new or modified standards are supported , and --
support for existing standards has not been
modified.
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

No new or modified MIBs are supported, and To locate and download MIBs for selected
support for existing MIBs has not been modified. platforms, Cisco software releases, and feature sets,
use Cisco MIB Locator found at the following
URL:

24
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
RFCs
RFCs Title
No new or modified RFCs are supported, and --
support for existing RFCs has not been modified .
Description Link
The Cisco Support and Documentation website http://www.cisco.com/cisco/web/support/
provides online resources to download index.html
documentation, software, and tools. Use these
resources to install and configure the software and
to troubleshoot and resolve technical issues with
Cisco products and technologies. Access to most
tools on the Cisco Support and Documentation
website requires a Cisco.com user ID and
password.
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow

Data Export
The following table provides release information about the feature or features described in this module.
This table lists only the software release that introduced support for a given feature in a given software
release train. Unless noted otherwise, subsequent releases of that software release train also support that
feature.

25
Table 4 Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
Feature Name Releases Feature Configuration Information

Egress NetFlow Accounting 12.3(11)T 15.0(1)S The Egress NetFlow Accounting
feature allows NetFlow statistics
to be gathered on egress traffic
that is exiting the router. Previous
versions of NetFlow allow
statistics to be gathered only on
ingress traffic that is entering the
router.
The following commands were
introduced by this feature: ip flow
egress and ip flow-egress input-
interface.
modified by this feature: flow-
sampler, match, show ip cache
flow, show ip cache verbose
flow, and show ip flow interface.
NetFlow Multiple Export 12.0(19)S 12.2(2)T 12.2(14)S The NetFlow Multiple Export
Destinations 15.0(1)S Destinations feature enables
configuration of multiple
destinations of the NetFlow data.
modified by this feature: ip flow-
aggregation cache, ip flow-
export destination, and show ip
flow export.
NetFlow Subinterface Support 12.0(22)S 12.2(14)S 12.2(15)T The NetFlow Subinterface

Support feature provides the
ability to enable NetFlow on a
per-subinterface basis.
The following command was
ingress.
modified by this feature: show ip
interface.

26
Glossary

NetFlow v9 Export Format 12.0(24)S 12.2(18)S The NetFlow v9 Export Format is
12.2(27)SBC 12.2(18)SXF flexible and extensible, which
12.3(1) 15.0(1)S provides the versatility needed to
support new fields and record
types. This format accommodates
new NetFlow-supported
technologies such as Multicast,
MPLS, NAT, and BGP next hop.
modified by this feature: debug
ip flow export, export, ip flow-
export, and show ip flow export.
Glossary
routing strategy. Autonomous systems are subdivided by areas. An autonomous system must be assigned a
unique 16-bit number by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA).
CEF --Cisco Express Forwarding. Layer 3 IP switching technology that optimizes network performance
and scalability for networks with large and dynamic traffic patterns.
RFC 1163.
BGP next hop --IP address of the next hop to be used by a router to reach a certain destination.
dCEF --distributed Cisco Express Forwarding. A type of CEF switching in which line cards (such as
Versatile Interface Processor (VIP) line cards) maintain identical copies of the forwarding information base
(FIB) and adjacency tables. The line cards perform the express forwarding between port adapters; this
relieves the Route Switch Processor of involvement in the switching operation.
export packet --Type of packet built by a device (for example, a router) with NetFlow services enabled
that is addressed to another device (for example, the NetFlow Collection Engine). The packet contains
NetFlow statistics. The other device processes the packet (parses, aggregates, and stores information on IP
flows).
fast switching --Cisco feature in which a route cache is used to expedite packet switching through a router.
flow --A set of packets with the same source IP address, destination IP address, protocol, source/destination
ports, and type-of-service, and the same interface on which the flow is monitored. Ingress flows are
associated with the input interface, and egress flows are associated with the output interface.
along a normally routed path (sometimes called MPLS hop-by-hop forwarding).
NetFlow --A Cisco IOS application that provides statistics on packets flowing through the router. It is
emerging as a primary network accounting and security technology.
NetFlow Aggregation --A NetFlow feature that lets you summarize NetFlow export data on an IOS router

27
from the router that is running NetFlow and decodes, aggregates, and stores them. You can generate reports
on various aggregations that can be set up on the NetFlow Collection Engine.
NetFlow v9 --NetFlow export format Version 9. A flexible and extensible means for carrying NetFlow
RP --Route Processor. A processor module in the Cisco 7000 series routers that contains the CPU, system
software, and most of the memory components that are used in the router. Sometimes called a Supervisory
Processor.

28
Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
This module contains information about and instructions for configuring NetFlow to capture and export
network traffic data. NetFlow capture and export are performed independently on each internetworking
device on which NetFlow is enabled. NetFlow need not be operational on each router in the network.
NetFlow is a Cisco IOS application that provides statistics on packets flowing through the router. NetFlow
is a primary network accounting and security technology.

Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 29
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 30
Information About Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 31
How to Configure NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 48
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 61
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export, page 64
Glossary, page 66

Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data

Export
Before you enable NetFlow, you must do the following:
Configure the router for IP routing
Ensure that one of the following is enabled on your router and on the interfaces that you want to
configure NetFlow on: Cisco Express Forwarding, distributed Cisco Express Forwarding, or fast
switching

29
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
CPU resources
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data

Export

NetFlow consumes a significant amount of memory. If you have memory constraints, you might want to
preset the size of the NetFlow cache so that it contains a lower number of entries. The default cache size
depends on the platform. For example, the default cache size for the Cisco 7500 router is 65,536 (64K)
entries.
Memory Impact
During times of heavy traffic, additional flows can fill up the global flow hash table. If you need to increase
the size of the global flow hash table, increase the memory of the router.

If your router is running Cisco IOS Release 12.2(14)S, 12.0(22)S, 12.2(15)T, or a later release, use the ip
flow ingress command to enable NetFlow on an interface.
Cisco IOS Releases 12.4(20)T or Earlier Releases

The ip flow ingress command behavior depends on the Cisco IOS release:
If your router is running a version earlier than Cisco IOS Release 12.4(20)T, and your router does not have
a VPN Service Adapter (VSA)-enabled interface, enabling the ip flow ingresscommand will result in the
ingress traffic being accounted for twice by the router.
If your router is running a version earlier than Cisco IOS Release 12.4(20)T, and your router has a VSA-
enabled interface, enabling the ip flow ingress command will result in the encrypted ingress traffic being
accounted for only once.
If your router is running a version of Cisco IOS Release12.4(20)T or later, enabling the ip flow ingress
command will result in the encrypted ingress traffic being accounted for only once.
Egress NetFlow Accounting in Cisco IOS 12.3T Releases, 12.3(11)T, or Later Releases
The Egress NetFlow Accounting feature captures NetFlow statistics for IP traffic only. Multiprotocol Label
Switching (MPLS) statistics are not captured. The MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature can be used
on a provider edge (PE) router to capture IP traffic flow information for egress IP packets that arrive at the
router as MPLS packets and undergo label disposition.
Egress NetFlow accounting might adversely affect network performance because of the additional
accounting-related computation that occurs in the traffic-forwarding path of the router.

30
NetFlow Data Export
Locally generated traffic (traffic that is generated by the router on which the Egress NetFlow Accounting
feature is configured) is not counted as flow traffic for the Egress NetFlow Accounting feature.
Note In Cisco IOS 12.2S releases, egress NetFlow captures either IPv4 or MPLS packets as they leave the router.
NetFlow Data Export

Export bandwidth--The export bandwidth use increases for Version 9 (because of template flowsets)
when compared to Version 5. The increase in bandwidth usage varies with the frequency with which
template flowsets are sent. The default is to resend templates every 20 packets; this has a bandwidth
cost of about 4 percent. If required, you can lower the resend rate with the ip flow-export template
refresh-rate packets command.
Performance impact--Version 9 slightly decreases the overall performance because generating and
maintaining valid template flowsets requires additional processing.
Restrictions for NetFlow Version 8 Export Format

Version 8 export format is available only for aggregation caches; it cannot be expanded to support new
features.

Version 5 export format is suitable only for the main cache; it cannot be expanded to support new features.

The Version 1 format was the initially released version. Do not use the Version 1 format unless you are
using a legacy collection system that requires it. Use Version 9 or Version 5 export format.
Information About Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data

Export
NetFlow Flows Key Fields, page 32
NetFlow Cache Management and Data Export, page 32
NetFlow Export Format Versions 9 8 5 and 1, page 33
Egress NetFlow Accounting Benefits NetFlow Accounting Simplified, page 46
NetFlow Subinterface Support Benefits Fine-Tuning Your Data Collection, page 48
NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations Benefits, page 48
NetFlow on a Distributed VIP Interface, page 48

31

NetFlow captures data from ingress (incoming) and egress (outgoing) packets. NetFlow gathers statistics
for the following ingress IP packets:
IP-to-IP packets
IP-to-MPLS packets
Egress NetFlow Accounting--NetFlow gathers statistics for all egress packets for IP traffic only.
NetFlow MPLS Egress--NetFlow gathers statistics for all egress MPLS-to-IP packets.

A network flow is identified as a unidirectional stream of packets between a given source and destination--
both are defined by a network-layer IP address and transport-layer source and destination port numbers.
Specifically, a flow is identified as the combination of the following key fields:
Source IP address
Source port number
These seven key fields define a unique flow. If a packet has one key field that is different from another
packet, it is considered to belong to another flow. A flow might contain other accounting fields (such as the
autonomous system number in the NetFlow export Version 5 flow format) that depend on the export record
version that you configure. Flows are stored in the NetFlow cache.
NetFlow Cache Management and Data Export

The key components of NetFlow are the NetFlow cache or data source that stores IP flow information and
the NetFlow export or transport mechanism that sends NetFlow data to a network management collector
such as the NetFlow Collection Engine. NetFlow operates by creating a NetFlow cache entry (a flow
record) for each active flow. A flow record is maintained within the NetFlow cache for each active flow.
Each flow record in the NetFlow cache contains fields that can later be exported to a collection device such
as the NetFlow Collection Engine.
NetFlow is efficient, with the amount of export data being about 1.5 percent of the switched traffic in the
router. NetFlow accounts for every packet (nonsampled mode) and provides a highly condensed and
detailed view of all network traffic that enters the router or switch.
The key to NetFlow-enabled switching scalability and performance is highly intelligent flow cache
management, especially for densely populated and busy edge routers handling large numbers of concurrent,
short duration flows. The NetFlow cache management software contains a highly sophisticated set of
algorithms for efficiently determining whether a packet is part of an existing flow or whether the packet
requires a new flow cache entry. The algorithms are also capable of dynamically updating the per-flow

32
NetFlow Export Format Versions 9 8 5 and 1
accounting measurements that reside in the NetFlow cache, and determining cache aging or flow
expiration.
The rules for expiring NetFlow cache entries include the following:
Flows that have been idle for a specified time are expired and removed from the cache.
Long lived flows are expired and removed from the cache. (Flows are not allowed to live for more
than 30 minutes by default; the underlying packet conversation remains undisturbed.)
As the cache becomes full, a number of heuristics are applied to aggressively age groups of flows
simultaneously.
TCP connections that have reached the end of the byte stream (FIN) or have been reset (RST) are
expired.
Expired flows are grouped into "NetFlow export" datagrams for export from the NetFlow- enabled device.
NetFlow export datagrams can consist of up to 30 flow records for Version 5 or Version 9 flow export. The
NetFlow functionality is configured on a per-interface basis. To configure NetFlow export capabilities, you
need to specify the IP address and application port number of the Cisco NetFlow or third-party flow
collector. The flow collector is a device that provides NetFlow export data filtering and aggregation
capabilities. The figure below shows an example of NetFlow data export from the main and aggregation
caches to a collector.
Figure 1 NetFlow Data Export from the Main and Aggregation Caches
NetFlow Export Format Versions 9 8 5 and 1

Overview, page 34
Details, page 34
NetFlow Export Version Formats, page 34
NetFlow Export Packet Header Format, page 35
NetFlow Flow Record and Export Format Content Information, page 36

33
Overview
NetFlow Data Export Format Selection, page 40

NetFlow Version 9 Data Export Format, page 41
Overview
NetFlow exports data in UDP datagrams in one of the following formats: Version 9, Version 8, Version 7,
Version 5, or Version 1:
Multicast, MPLS, and Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) next hop. The Version 9 export format enables
you to use the same version for main and aggregation caches, and the format is extensible, so you can
use the same export format with future features.
Version 8--A format added to support data export from aggregation caches. Export datagrams contain
a subset of the usual Version 5 export data, which is valid for the particular aggregation cache scheme.
Version 5--A later enhanced version that adds BGP-AS information and flow sequence numbers.
(Versions 2 through 4 were not released.) This is the most commonly used format.
Version 1--The initially released export format that is rarely used today. Do not use the Version 1
export format unless the legacy collection system that you are using requires it. Use either the Version
9 export format or the Version 5 export format.
Details
The following sections provide more detailed information on NetFlow Data Export Formats:
NetFlow Export Version Formats

For all export versions, the NetFlow export datagram consists of a header and a sequence of flow records.
The header contains information such as sequence number, record count, and system uptime. The flow
record contains flow information such as IP addresses, ports, and routing information.
The NetFlow Version 9 export format is the newest NetFlow export format. The distinguishing feature of
the NetFlow Version 9 export format is that it is template based. Templates make the record format
extensible. This feature allows future enhancements to NetFlow without requiring concurrent changes to
the basic flow-record format.
The use of templates with the NetFlow Version 9 export format provides several other key benefits:
You can export almost any information from a router or switch, including Layer 2 through 7
information, routing information, and IP Version 6 (IPv6), IP Version 4 (IPv4), Multicast, and MPLS
information. This new information allows new applications of export data and provides new views of
network behavior.
Third-party business partners who produce applications that provide collector or display services for
NetFlow are not required to recompile their applications each time a new NetFlow export field is
added. Instead, they might be able to use an external data file that documents the known template
formats.
New features can be added to NetFlow more quickly, without breaking current implementations.
Netflow is "future proofed" because the Version 9 export format can be adapted to provide support for
new and developing protocols and other non-NetFlow-based approaches to data collection.

34
NetFlow Export Packet Header Format
The work of the IETF IP, Information Export (IPFIX) Working Group (WG), and the IETF Pack Sampling
(PSAMP) WG are based on the NetFlow Version 9 export format.
The Version 1 export format was the original format supported in the initial Cisco IOS software releases
containing the NetFlow functionality; it is rarely used today. The Version 5 export format is an
enhancement that adds BGP autonomous system information and flow sequence numbers. Versions 2
through 4 and Version 6 export formats were either not released or not supported. The Version 8 export
format is the NetFlow export format to use when you enable router-based NetFlow aggregation on Cisco
IOS router platforms.
The figure below shows a typical datagram used for NetFlow fixed format export Versions 1, 5, 7, and 8.
Figure 2 Typical Datagram for NetFlow Fixed Format Export Versions 1, 5, 7, 8
NetFlow Export Packet Header Format

In all the five export versions, the datagram consists of a header and one or more flow records. The first
field of the header contains the version number of the export datagram. Typically, a receiving application
that accepts any of the format versions allocates a buffer large enough for the largest possible datagram
from any of the format versions and then uses the header to determine how to interpret the datagram. The
second field in the header contains the number of records in the datagram (indicating the number of expired
flows represented by this datagram). Datagram headers for NetFlow Export Versions 5, 8, and 9 also
include a "sequence number" field used by NetFlow collectors to check for lost datagrams.
The NetFlow Version 9 export packet header format is shown in the figure below.
Figure 3 NetFlow Version 9 Export Packet Header Format

35
NetFlow Flow Record and Export Format Content Information
The table below lists the NetFlow Version 9 export packet header field names and descriptions.
Table 5 NetFlow Version 9 Export Packet Header Field Names and Descriptions
Field Name Description

Version The version of NetFlow records exported in this
packet; for Version 9, this value is 0x0009.
Count Number of FlowSet records (both template and

data) contained within this packet.
System Uptime Time in milliseconds since this device was first

booted.
UNIX Seconds Seconds since 0000 Coordinated Universal Time

(UTC) 1970.
Package Sequence Incremental sequence counter of all export packets

sent by this export device; this value is cumulative,
and it can be used to learn whether any export
packets have been missed.
This is a change from the NetFlow Version 5 and
Version 8 headers, where this number represented
"total flows."
Source ID The Source ID field is a 32-bit value that is used to

guarantee uniqueness for each flow exported from a
particular device. (The Source ID field is the
equivalent of the engine type and engine ID fields
found in the NetFlow Version 5 and Version 8
headers.) The format of this field is vendor specific.
In Ciscos implementation, the first two bytes are
reserved for future expansion and are always zero.
Byte 3 provides uniqueness with respect to the
routing engine on the exporting device. Byte 4
provides uniqueness with respect to the particular
line card or Versatile Interface Processor on the
exporting device. Collector devices should use the
combination of the source IP address and the
Source ID field to associate an incoming NetFlow
export packet with a unique instance of NetFlow on
a particular device.

This section gives details about the Cisco export format flow record. The table below indicates which flow
record format fields are available for Versions 5 and 9. (Yes indicates that the field is available. No
indicates that the field is not available.)

36
Table 6 NetFlow Flow Record Format Fields for Format Versions 5, and 9
Field Version 5 Version 9

Source IP address Yes Yes
Destination IP address Yes Yes
Source TCP/UDP application port Yes Yes
Destination TCP/UDP application Yes Yes

port
Next hop router IP address Yes Yes
Input physical interface index Yes Yes
Output physical interface index Yes Yes
Packet count for this flow Yes Yes
Byte count for this flow Yes Yes
Start of flow timestamp Yes Yes
End of flow timestamp Yes Yes
IP Protocol (for example, TCP=6; Yes Yes

UDP=17)
Type of Service (ToS) byte Yes Yes
TCP Flags (cumulative OR of Yes Yes

TCP flags)
Source AS number Yes Yes
Destination AS number Yes Yes
Source subnet mask Yes Yes
Destination subnet mask Yes Yes
Flags (indicates, among other Yes Yes

things, which flows are invalid)
Other flow fields1 No Yes
1 For a list of other flow fields available in Version 9 export format, see Figure 5 .

37
The figure below is an example of the NetFlow Version 5 export record format, including the contents and
description of byte locations. The terms in bold indicate values that were added for the Version 5 format.
Figure 4 NetFlow Version 5 Export Record Format
The table below shows the field names and descriptions for the NetFlow Version 5 export record format.
Table 7 NetFlow Version 5 Export Record Format Field Names and Descriptions
Content Bytes Descriptions

srcaddr 0-3 Source IP address
dstaddr 4-7 Destination IP address
nexthop 8-11 Next hop routers IP address
input 12-13 Ingress interface Simple Network

Management Protocol (SNMP)
ifIndex
output 14-15 Egress interface SNMP ifIndex
dPkts 16-19 Packets in the flow
dOctets 20-23 Octets (bytes) in the flow
first 24-27 SysUptime at start of the flow
last 28-31 SysUptime at the time the last

packet of the flow was received
srcport 32-33 Layer 4 source port number or

equivalent
dstport 34-35 Layer 4 destination port number

or equivalent
pad1 36 Unused (zero) byte

38
Content Bytes Descriptions

tcp_flags 37 Cumulative OR of TCP flags
prot 38 Layer 4 protocol (for example,

6=TCP, 17=UDP)
tos 39 IP type-of-service byte
src_as 40-41 Autonomous system number of

the source, either origin or peer
dst_as 42-43 Autonomous system number of

the destination, either origin or
peer
src_mask 44 Source address prefix mask bits
dst_mask 45 Destination address prefix mask

bits
pad2 46-47 PAD2 is unused (zero) bytes
The figure below shows a typical flow record for the Version 9 export format. The NetFlow Version 9
export record format is different from the traditional NetFlow fixed format export record. In NetFlow
Version 9, a template describes the NetFlow data and the flow set contains the actual data. This allows for

39
NetFlow Data Export Format Selection
flexible export. Detailed information about the fields in Version 9 and export format architecture is
available in the NetFlow Version 9 Flow-Record Format document.
Figure 5 NetFlow Version 9 Export Packet Example
For all export versions, you can specify a destination where NetFlow data export packets are sent, such as
the workstation running NetFlow Collection Engine, when the number of recently expired flows reaches a
predetermined maximum, or every second--whichever occurs first. For a Version 1 datagram, up to 24
flows can be sent in a single UDP datagram of approximately 1200 bytes; for a Version 5 datagram, up to
30 flows can be sent in a single UDP datagram of approximately 1500 bytes.
For detailed information on the flow record formats, data types, and export data fields for Versions 1, 7,
and 9 and platform-specific information when applicable, see Appendix 2 in the NetFlow Services
Solutions Guide .
NetFlow Data Export Format Selection

NetFlow exports data in UDP datagrams in export format Version 9, 8, 5, or 1. The table below describes
situations when you might select a particular NetFlow export format.

40
NetFlow Version 9 Data Export Format
Table 8 When to Select a Particular NetFlow Export Format
Export Format Select When...

Version 9 You need to export data from various technologies,
such as Multicast, DoS, IPv6, and BGP next hop.
This format accommodates new NetFlow-supported
technologies such as Multicast, MPLS, and BGP
next hop.
The Version 9 export format supports export from
the main cache and from aggregation caches.
Version 8 You need to export data from aggregation caches.

The Version 8 export format is available only for
export from aggregation caches.
Version 5 You need to export data from the NetFlow main

cache, and you are not planning to support new
features.
Version 5 export format does not support export
from aggregation caches.
Version 1 You need to export data to a legacy collection

system that requires Version 1 export format.
Otherwise, do not use Version 1 export format. Use
Version 9 or Version 5 export format.

The NetFlow Version 9 Export Format feature was introduced in Cisco IOS Release 12.0(24)S and was
integrated into Cisco IOS Release 12.3(1) and Cisco IOS Release 12.2(18)S.
NetFlow Version 9 data export supports Cisco Express Forwarding switching, distributed Cisco Express
Forwarding switching, and fast switching.
NetFlow Version 9 is a flexible and extensible means for transferring NetFlow records from a network
node to a collector. NetFlow Version 9 has definable record types and is self-describing for easier NetFlow
Collection Engine configuration.
Using Version 9 export, you can define new formats on the router and send these formats to the NetFlow
Collection Engine (formerly called NetFlow FlowCollector) at set intervals. You can enable the features
that you want, and the field values corresponding to those features are sent to the NetFlow Collection
Engine.
Third-party business partners who produce applications that provide NetFlow Collection Engine or display
services for NetFlow need not recompile their applications each time a new NetFlow technology is added.
Instead, with the NetFlow Version 9 Export Format feature, they can use an external data file that
documents the known template formats and field types.
In NetFlow Version 9
Record formats are defined by templates.
Template descriptions are communicated from the router to the NetFlow Collection Engine.
Flow records are sent from the router to the NetFlow Collection Engine with minimal template
information so that the NetFlow Collection Engine can relate the records to the appropriate template.

41
Version 9 is independent of the underlying transport protocol (UDP, TCP, SCTP, and so on).
NetFlow Version 9 Template-Based Flow Record Format

The main feature of NetFlow Version 9 export format is that it is template based. A template describes a
NetFlow record format and attributes of fields (such as type and length) within the record. The router
assigns each template an ID, which is communicated to the NetFlow Collection Engine along with the
template description. The template ID is used for all further communication from the router to the NetFlow
Collection Engine.
NetFlow Version 9 Export Flow Records

The basic output of NetFlow is a flow record. In NetFlow Version 9 export format, a flow record follows
the same sequence of fields as found in the template definition. The template to which NetFlow flow
records belong is determined by the prefixing of the template ID to the group of NetFlow flow records that
belong to a template. For a complete discussion of existing NetFlow flow-record formats, see the NetFlow
Services Solutions Guide.
NetFlow Version 9 Export Packet

In NetFlow Version 9, an export packet consists of the packet header and flowsets. The packet header
identifies the NetFlow Version 9 Data Export Format, page 41f"> Figure 3 for Version 9 export packet
header details. Flowsets are of two types: template flowsets and data flowsets. The template flowset
describes the fields that will be in the data flowsets (or flow records). Each data flowset contains the values
or statistics of one or more flows with the same template ID. When the NetFlow Collection Engine receives
a template flowset, it stores the flowset and export source address so that subsequent data flowsets that
match the flowset ID and source combination are parsed according to the field definitions in the template
flowset. Version 9 supports NetFlow Collection Engine Version 4.0. For an example of a Version 9 export
packet, see NetFlow Version 9 Data Export Format, page 41.
NetFlow Export Templates

NetFlow implements a variety of templates, each exporting a different set of fields for a specific purpose.
For example, the MPLS templates are different from the Optimized Edge Routing (OER) templates and the
various option templates.
The table below lists the export templates and the specific set of fields the export pertains to.
Table 9 NetFlow Export Templates
Number of Export Templates Exports Fields Pertaining to...

1 IPv4 main cache
8 MPLS labels 0 to 3
21 Aggregation caches with or without BGP subflows
3 BGP, BGP Next Hop (NH), and Multicast
4 OER
2 MAC and auxiliary information

42
Number of Export Templates Exports Fields Pertaining to...

11 Random sampler information, interface names,
sampling option, and exporter status options

The Version 8 data export format is the NetFlow export format used when the router-based NetFlow
Aggregation feature is enabled on Cisco IOS router platforms. The Version 8 format allows for export
datagrams to contain a subset of the Version 5 export data that is based on the configured aggregation
cache scheme. For example, a certain subset of the Version 5 export data is exported for the destination
prefix aggregation scheme, and a different subset is exported for the source-prefix aggregation scheme.
The Version 8 export format was introduced in Cisco IOS Release 12.0(3)T for the Cisco IOS NetFlow
Aggregation feature. An additional six aggregation schemes that also use Version 8 format were defined for
the NetFlow ToS-Based Router Aggregation feature introduced in Cisco IOS 12.0(15)S and integrated into
Cisco IOS Releases 12.2(4)T and 12.2(14)S. Refer to the "Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches"
module for information on configuring Version 8 data export for aggregation caches.
The Version 8 datagram consists of a header with the version number (which is 8) and time-stamp
information, followed by one or more records corresponding to individual entries in the NetFlow cache.
The figure below displays the NetFlow Version 8 export packet header format.
The table below lists the NetFlow Version 8 export packet header field names and definitions.

Version Flow export format version number. In this case 8.

43

Count Number of export records in the datagram.
System Uptime Number of milliseconds since the router last

booted.
UNIX Seconds Number of seconds since 0000 UTC 1970.
UNIX NanoSeconds Number of residual nanoseconds since 0000 UTC

1970.
Flow Sequence Number Sequence counter of total flows sent for this export
stream.
Engine Type The type of switching engine. RP = 0 and LC = 1.
Engine ID Slot number of the NetFlow engine.
Aggregation Type of aggregation scheme being used.
Agg Version Aggregation subformat version number. The

current value is 2.
Sampling Interval Interval value used if Sampled NetFlow is

configured.
Reserved Reserved.

The Version 5 data export format adds support for BGP autonomous system information and flow sequence
numbers.
Because NetFlow uses UDP to send export datagrams, datagrams can be lost. The Version 5 header format
contains a flow sequence number to find out whether flow export information has been lost. The sequence
number is equal to the sequence number of the previous datagram plus the number of flows in the previous
datagram. After receiving a new datagram, the receiving application can subtract the expected sequence
number from the sequence number in the header to get the number of missed flows.

44
All fields in the Version 5 export format are in network byte order. The figure below shows the NetFlow
Version 5 export packet header format.
Bytes Field Description

0 to 1 Version Flow export format version
number. In this case 5.
2 to 3 Count Number of export records in the

datagram.
4 to 7 System Uptime Number of milliseconds since the

router last booted.
8 to 11 UNIX Seconds Number of seconds since 0000

UTC 1970.
12 to 15 UNIX NanoSeconds Number of residual nanoseconds

since 0000 UTC 1970.
16 to 19 Flow Sequence Number Sequence counter of total flows

sent for this export stream.
20 Engine Type The type of switching engine. RP

= 0 and LC = 1.
21 Engine ID Slot number of the NetFlow

engine.
22 to 23 Reserved Reserved.

45
Egress NetFlow Accounting Benefits NetFlow Accounting Simplified

The NetFlow Version 1 data export format was the format supported in the initial Cisco IOS software
releases containing the NetFlow functionality. It is rarely used today. Do not use the Version 1 export
format unless the legacy collection system you are using requires it. Use either the Version 9 export format
or the Version 5 export format.
The figure below shows the NetFlow Version 1 export packet header format.
Figure 8 Version 1 Export Packet Header Format
Table 12 NetFlow Version 1 Packet Header Field Names and Descriptions

Version Flow export format version number. In this case 1.
Count Number of export records in the datagram.
System Uptime Number of milliseconds since the router last

booted.
UNIX Seconds Number of seconds since 0000 UTC 1970.
UNIX NanoSeconds Number of residual nanoseconds since 0000 UTC

1970.
Egress NetFlow Accounting Benefits NetFlow Accounting Simplified

The Egress NetFlow Accounting feature can simplify the NetFlow configuration. The following example
shows how.
In the two figures below, both incoming and outgoing (ingress and egress) flow statistics are required for
the server. The server is attached to Router B. The "cloud" in the figure represents the core of the network
and includes MPLS VPNs.
All traffic denoted by the arrows must be accounted for. The solid arrows represent IP traffic and the dotted
arrows represent MPLS VPNs.

46
The first figure below shows how the flow traffic was tracked before the introduction of the Egress
NetFlow Accounting feature. The second figure below shows how the flow traffic is tracked after the
introduction of the Egress NetFlow Accounting feature. The Egress NetFlow Accounting feature simplifies
configuration tasks and facilitates collection and tracking of incoming and outgoing flow statistics for the
server in this example.
Because only ingress flows could be tracked before the Egress NetFlow Accounting feature was
introduced, the following NetFlow configurations had to be implemented for the tracking of ingress and
egress flows from Router B:
Enable NetFlow on an interface on Router B to track ingress IP traffic from Router A to Router B.
Enable NetFlow on an interface on Router D to track ingress IP traffic from Router B to Router D.
Enable NetFlow on an interface on Router A to track ingress traffic from the MPLS VPN from Router
B to Router A.
Enable NetFlow on an interface on Router B to track ingress traffic from the MPLS VPN from Router
D to Router B.
Figure 9 Ingress-Only NetFlow Example
A configuration such as the one used in the figure above requires that NetFlow statistics from three separate
routers be added to obtain the flow statistics for the server.
In comparison, the example in the figure below shows NetFlow, the Egress NetFlow Accounting feature,
and the MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature being used to capture ingress and egress flow statistics
for Router B, thus obtaining the required flow statistics for the server.
In the figure below, the following NetFlow configurations are applied to Router B:
Enable NetFlow on an interface on Router B to track ingress IP traffic from Router A to Router B.
Enable the Egress NetFlow Accounting feature on an interface on Router B to track egress IP traffic
from Router B to Router D.
B to Router D.
B to Router A.
After NetFlow is configured on Router B, you can display all NetFlow statistics for the server by using the
show ip cache flow command or the show ip cache verbose flow command for Router B.
Figure 10 Egress NetFlow Accounting Example

47
NetFlow Subinterface Support Benefits Fine-Tuning Your Data Collection
NetFlow Subinterface Support Benefits Fine-Tuning Your Data Collection

You can configure NetFlow on a per-subinterface basis. If your network contains thousands of
subinterfaces, you can collect export records from just a few of them. The result is lower bandwidth
requirements for NetFlow data export and reduced platform requirements for NetFlow data-collection
devices.
The configuration of NetFlow on selected subinterfaces provides the following benefits:
Reduced bandwidth requirement between routing devices and NetFlow management workstations.
Reduced NetFlow workstation requirements; the number of flows sent to the workstation for
processing is reduced.
NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations Benefits

The NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations feature enables configuration of multiple destinations for the
NetFlow data. With this feature enabled, two identical streams of NetFlow data are sent to the destination
host. Currently, the maximum number of export destinations allowed is two.
The NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations feature improves the chances of receiving complete NetFlow
data because it provides redundant streams of data. Because the same export data is sent to more than one
NetFlow collector, fewer packets are lost.
NetFlow on a Distributed VIP Interface

On a Cisco 7500 series router with a Route Switch Processor (RSP) and with VIP controllers, the VIP
hardware can be configured to switch packets received by the VIP interfaces with no per-packet
intervention on the part of the RSP. This process is called distributed switching. When VIP distributed
switching is enabled, the input VIP interface switches IP packets instead of forwarding them to the RSP for
switching. Distributed switching decreases the demand on the RSP. VIP interfaces with distributed
switching enabled can be configured for NetFlow.

This section contains instructions for configuring NetFlow to capture and export network traffic data.
Perform the following tasks to configure NetFlow to capture and export network traffic data:
Configuring NetFlow, page 48
Verifying that NetFlow Is Operational and Displaying NetFlow Statistics, page 50
Configuring NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format, page 52
Verifying that NetFlow Data Export Is Operational, page 55
Clearing NetFlow Statistics on the Router, page 56
Customizing the NetFlow Main Cache Parameters, page 57
Configuring NetFlow
Perform the following task to enable NetFlow on an interface.

48
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. interface type number
5. exit
6. Repeat Steps 3 through 5 to enable NetFlow on other interfaces.
7. end
DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 enable Enables privileged EXEC mode.
Example:
Router> enable
Step 2 configure terminal Enters global configuration mode.
Example:
Step 3 interface type number Specifies the interface that you want to enable NetFlow on and
enters interface configuration mode.
Example:
Step 4 ip flow {ingress | egress} Enables NetFlow on the interface.

ingress --Captures traffic that is being received by the
interface
Example:
egress --Captures traffic that is being transmitted by the
Router(config-if)# ip flow ingress interface
Example:
Step 5 exit (Optional) Exits interface configuration mode and enters global
configuration mode.
Note You need to use this command only if you want to enable
Example: NetFlow on another interface.

49
Verifying that NetFlow Is Operational and Displaying NetFlow Statistics

Step 6 Repeat Steps 3 through 5 to enable NetFlow on other This step is optional.
interfaces.
Step 7 end Exits the current configuration mode and returns to privileged
EXEC mode.
Example:
Verifying that NetFlow Is Operational and Displaying NetFlow Statistics

Perform the following task to verify that NetFlow is operational and to display NetFlow statistics.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip flow interface
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 show ip flow interface

Use this command to display the NetFlow configuration for an interface. The following is sample output from this
command:
Example:
Router# show ip flow interface
Ethernet0/0
ip flow ingress
Router#
Use this command to verify that NetFlow is operational and to display a summary of NetFlow statistics. The
Example:

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.249 .694 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .027 .000 .027 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000

50

TCP-FTP 108 0.0 1133 40 2.4 1799.6 0.9
TCP-FTPD 108 0.0 1133 40 2.4 1799.6 0.9
TCP-WWW 54 0.0 1133 40 1.2 1799.6 0.8
TCP-SMTP 54 0.0 1133 40 1.2 1799.6 0.8
TCP-BGP 27 0.0 1133 40 0.6 1799.6 0.7
TCP-NNTP 27 0.0 1133 40 0.6 1799.6 0.7
TCP-other 297 0.0 1133 40 6.8 1799.7 0.8
UDP-TFTP 27 0.0 1133 28 0.6 1799.6 1.0
UDP-other 108 0.0 1417 28 3.1 1799.6 0.9
ICMP 135 0.0 1133 427 3.1 1799.6 0.8
Total: 945 0.0 1166 91 22.4 1799.6 0.8
Et0/0 192.168.67.6 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.200 01 0000 0C01 51
Et0/0 10.10.18.1 Null 172.16.11.5 11 0043 0043 51
Et0/0 10.10.18.1 Null 172.16.11.5 11 0045 0045 51
Et0/0 10.234.53.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 0000 0800 51
Et0/0 10.10.19.1 Null 172.16.11.6 11 0044 0044 51
Et0/0 10.10.19.1 Null 172.16.11.6 11 00A2 00A2 51
Et0/0 192.168.87.200 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 0014 0014 50
Et0/0 192.168.87.200 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 0015 0015 52
.
.
.
Et0/0 172.16.1.84 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.19 06 0087 0087 50
Et0/0 172.16.1.84 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.19 06 0050 0050 51
Et0/0 172.16.1.85 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.20 06 0089 0089 49
Et0/0 172.16.1.85 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.20 06 0050 0050 50
Et0/0 10.251.10.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 0000 0800 51
Et0/0 10.162.37.71 Null 172.16.11.3 06 027C 027C 49
Router#
Use this command to verify that NetFlow is operational and to display a detailed summary of NetFlow statistics. The
Example:

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.249 .694 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .027 .000 .027 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
TCP-FTP 108 0.0 1133 40 2.4 1799.6 0.9
TCP-FTPD 108 0.0 1133 40 2.4 1799.6 0.9
TCP-WWW 54 0.0 1133 40 1.2 1799.6 0.8
TCP-SMTP 54 0.0 1133 40 1.2 1799.6 0.8
TCP-BGP 27 0.0 1133 40 0.6 1799.6 0.7
TCP-NNTP 27 0.0 1133 40 0.6 1799.6 0.7
TCP-other 297 0.0 1133 40 6.6 1799.7 0.8
UDP-TFTP 27 0.0 1133 28 0.6 1799.6 1.0

51
Configuring NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format
UDP-other 108 0.0 1417 28 3.0 1799.6 0.9

ICMP 135 0.0 1133 427 3.0 1799.6 0.8
Total: 945 0.0 1166 91 21.9 1799.6 0.8
Et0/0 192.168.67.6 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.200 01 00 10 799
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 1258.1
Et0/0 10.10.18.1 Null 172.16.11.5 11 00 10 799
0043 /0 0 0043 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 1258.0
Et0/0 10.10.18.1 Null 172.16.11.5 11 00 10 799
0045 /0 0 0045 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 1258.0
Et0/0 10.234.53.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 799
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 1258.1
Et0/0 10.10.19.1 Null 172.16.11.6 11 00 10 799
0044 /0 0 0044 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 1258.1
.
.
.
Et0/0 172.16.1.84 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.19 06 00 00 799
0087 /0 0 0087 /0 0 0.0.0.0 40 1258.1
Et0/0 172.16.1.84 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.19 06 00 00 799
0050 /0 0 0050 /0 0 0.0.0.0 40 1258.0
Et0/0 172.16.1.85 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.20 06 00 00 798
0089 /0 0 0089 /0 0 0.0.0.0 40 1256.5
Et0/0 172.16.1.85 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.20 06 00 00 799
0050 /0 0 0050 /0 0 0.0.0.0 40 1258.0
Et0/0 10.251.10.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 799
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 1500 1258.1
Et0/0 10.162.37.71 Null 172.16.11.3 06 00 00 798
027C /0 0 027C /0 0 0.0.0.0 40 1256.4
Router#
Configuring NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format

Perform the steps in this optional task to configure NetFlow Data Export using the Version 9 export format.
Note This task does not include instructions for configuring Reliable NetFlow Data Export using the Stream
Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP). Refer to the NetFlow Reliable Export with SCTP module for
information about and instructions for configuring Reliable NetFlow Data Export using SCTP.
This task does not include the steps for configuring NetFlow. You must configure NetFlow by enabling it
on at least one interface in the router in order to export traffic data with NetFlow Data Export. Refer to the
Configuring NetFlow, page 48 for information about configuring NetFlow.

52
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-export destination {ip-address | hostname} udp-port
4. Repeat Step 3 once to configure an additional NetFlow export destination.
5. ip flow-export source interface-type interface-number
6. ip flow-export version 9 [origin-as | peer-as] [bgp-nexthop]
7. ip flow-export interface-names
8. ip flow-export template refresh-rate packets
9. ip flow-export template timeout-rate minutes
10. i p flow-export template options export-stats
11. ip flow-export template options refresh-rate packets
12. ip flow-export template options timeout-rate minutes
13. end
DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 enable Enters privileged EXEC mode.
Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 ip flow-export destination {ip-address | Specifies the IP address, or hostname of the NetFlow collector, and the UDP
hostname} udp-port port the NetFlow collector is listening on.
Example:
Step 4 Repeat Step 3 once to configure an (Optional) You can configure a maximum of two export destinations for
additional NetFlow export destination. NetFlow.

53

Step 5 ip flow-export source interface-type (Optional) Specifies the IP address from the interface. The IP address is
interface-number used as the source IP address for the UDP datagrams that are sent by
NetFlow data export to the destination host.
Example:
source ethernet 0/0
Step 6 ip flow-export version 9 [origin-as | (Optional) Enables the export of information in NetFlow cache entries.
peer-as] [bgp-nexthop]
The version 9 keyword specifies that the export packet uses the
Version 9 format.
Example: The origin-as keyword specifies that export statistics include the
originating autonomous system for the source and destination.
Router(config)# ip flow-export The peer-as keyword specifies that export statistics include the peer
version 9
autonomous system for the source and destination.
The bgp-nexthop keyword specifies that export statistics include BGP
next hop-related information.
Caution Entering this command on a Cisco 12000 series Internet router
causes packet forwarding to stop for a few seconds while NetFlow
reloads the RP and LC Cisco Express Forwarding tables. To avoid
interruption of service to a live network, apply this command
during a change window, or include it in the startup-config file to
be executed during a router reboot.
Step 7 ip flow-export interface-names Configures NetFlow data export to include the interface names from the
flows when it exports the NetFlow cache entry to a destination system.
Example:
interface-names
Step 8 ip flow-export template refresh-rate (Optional) Enables the export of information in NetFlow cache entries.
packets
The template keyword specifies template-specific configurations.
The refresh-rate packetskeyword-argument pair specifies the number
Example: of packets exported before the templates are re-sent. You can specify
from 1 to 600 packets. The default is 20.
template refresh-rate 15
Example:

54
Verifying that NetFlow Data Export Is Operational

Step 9 ip flow-export template timeout-rate (Optional) Enables the export of information in NetFlow cache entries.
minutes
The template keyword specifies that the timeout-rate keyword applies
to the template.
Example: The timeout-rate minuteskeyword-argument pair specifies the time
elapsed before the templates are re-sent. You can specify from 1 to
Router(config)# ip flow-export 3600 minutes. The default is 30.
template timeout-rate 90
Step 10 i p flow-export template options export- (Optional) Enables the export of information in NetFlow cache entries.
stats
The options keyword specifies template options.
Example: The export-statskeyword specifies that the export statistics include the
total number of flows exported and the total number of packets
Router(config)# ip flow-export exported.
template options export-stats
Step 11 ip flow-export template options refresh- (Optional) Enables the export of information in NetFlow cache entries.
rate packets
Example: The refresh-rate packetskeyword-argument pair specifies the number
of packets exported before the templates are re-sent. You can specify
Router(config)# ip flow-export from 1 to 600 packets. The default is 20.
template options refresh-rate 25
Step 12 ip flow-export template options timeout- (Optional) Enables the export of information in NetFlow cache entries.
rate minutes
Example: The timeout-rate minuteskeyword-argument pair specifies the time
elapsed before the templates are re-sent. You can specify from 1 to
Router(config)# ip flow-export 3600 minutes. The default is 30.
template options timeout-rate 120
Step 13 end Exits the current configuration mode and enters privileged EXEC mode.
Example:
Router(config)# end
Verifying that NetFlow Data Export Is Operational

Perform the steps in this optional task to verify that NetFlow data export is operational and to display the
statistics for NetFlow data export.
SUMMARY STEPS

2. show ip flow export template

55
Clearing NetFlow Statistics on the Router
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 show ip flow export

Use this command to display statistics for the NetFlow data export, including statistics for the main cache and for all
other enabled caches. The following is sample output from this command:
Example:

Exporting using source interface Ethernet0/0
Router#
Step 2 show ip flow export template
Use this command to display statistics for the NetFlow data export (such as the template timeout rate and the refresh
rate) for template-specific configurations. The following is sample output from this command:
Example:
Router# show ip flow export template

Template Options Flag = 1
Total number of Templates added = 1
Total active Templates = 1
Flow Templates active = 0
Flow Templates added = 0
Option Templates active = 1
Option Templates added = 1
Template ager polls = 0
Option Template ager polls = 140
Main cache version 9 export is enabled
Template export information
Template timeout = 90
Template refresh rate = 15
Option export information
Option timeout = 120
Option refresh rate = 25
Router#
Clearing NetFlow Statistics on the Router

Perform the steps in this optional task to clear NetFlow statistics on the router.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
2. clear ip flow stats

56
Customizing the NetFlow Main Cache Parameters
NetFlow Cache Entry Management on a Routing Device
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Use this command to enter privileged EXEC mode on the router:
Example:
Router> enable
Router#
Step 2 clear ip flow stats
Use this command to clear the NetFlow statistics on the router. For example:
Example:
Router# clear ip flow stats
Customizing the NetFlow Main Cache Parameters

NetFlow operates by creating a NetFlow cache entry (a flow record) for each active flow. A flow record is
maintained within the NetFlow cache for all active flows. Each flow record in the NetFlow cache contains
fields that can later be exported to a collection device, such as the NetFlow Collection Engine. NetFlow
enables the accumulation of data on flows. Each flow is identified by unique characteristics such as the IP
address, interface, application, and ToS.
To customize the parameters for the main NetFlow cache, perform the steps in this optional task.
NetFlow Cache Entry Management on a Routing Device, page 57
NetFlow Cache Size, page 58
NetFlow Cache Entry Management on a Routing Device

The routing device checks the NetFlow cache once per second and causes the flow to expire in the
following instances:
Flow transport is completed (TCP connections that have reached the end of the byte stream [FIN] or
that have been reset [RST] are expired).
The flow cache has become full.
A flow becomes inactive. By default, a flow that is unaltered in the last 15 seconds is classified as
inactive.
An active flow has been monitored for a specified number of minutes. By default, active flows are
flushed from the cache when they have been monitored for 30 minutes.
Routing device default timer settings are 15 seconds for the inactive timer and 30 minutes for the active
timer. You can configure your own time interval for the inactive timer from 10 to 600 seconds. You can
configure the time interval for the active timer from 1 to 60 minutes.

57
NetFlow Cache Size
NetFlow Cache Size

After you enable NetFlow on an interface, NetFlow reserves memory to accommodate a number of entries
in the NetFlow cache. Normally, the size of the NetFlow cache meets the needs of your NetFlow traffic
rates. The cache default size is 64K flow cache entries. Each cache entry requires 64 bytes of storage.
About 4 MB of DRAM are required for a cache with the default number of entries. You can increase or
decrease the number of entries maintained in the cache, if required. For environments with a large amount
of flow traffic (such as an Internet core router), Cisco recommends a larger value such as 131072 (128K).
To obtain information on your flow traffic, use the show ip cache flow command.
A NetFlow cache can be resized depending on the platform and the amount of DRAM on a line card. For
example, the NetFlow cache size is configurable for software-based platforms such as Cisco 75xx and 72xx
series routers. The amount of memory on a Cisco 12000 line card determines how many flows are possible
in the cache.
Using the ip flow-cache entries command, configure the size of your NetFlow cache from 1024 entries to
524,288 entries. Use the cache entries command (after you configure NetFlow aggregation) to configure
the size of the NetFlow aggregation cache from 1024 entries to 524,288 entries.
Caution Cisco recommends that you not change the values for NetFlow cache entries. Improper use of this feature
could cause network problems. To return to the default value for NetFlow cache entries, use the no ip flow-
cache entries global configuration command.
Note If you modify any parameters for the NetFlow main cache after you enable NetFlow, the changes will not
take effect until you reboot the router or disable NetFlow on every interface it is enabled on, and then re-
enable NetFlow on the interfaces.
>
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
4. no ip flow {ingress | egress}
5. exit
6. Repeat Steps 3 through 5 for every interface that has NetFlow enabled on it.
7. ip flow-cache entries number
8. ip flow-cache timeout active minutes
9. ip flow-cache timeout inactive seconds
12. exit
13. Repeat Steps 10 through 12 for every interface that previously had NetFlow enabled on it.
14. end

58
NetFlow Cache Size
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 interface type number (Required if NetFlow is already enabled on the interface) Specifies the
interface that you want to disable NetFlow on and enters interface
configuration mode.
Example:
Step 4 no ip flow {ingress | egress} (Required if NetFlow is enabled on the interface) Disables NetFlow on
the interface.
ingress --Captures traffic that is being received by the interface
Example:
egress --Captures traffic that is being transmitted by the interface
Router(config-if)# no ip flow ingress
Example:
configuration mode.
Note You only need to use this command if you need to disable
Step 6 Repeat Steps 3 through 5 for every interface This step is required if NetFlow is enabled on any other interfaces. --
that has NetFlow enabled on it.
Step 7 ip flow-cache entries number (Optional) Changes the number of entries maintained in the NetFlow
cache.
The number argument is the number of entries to be maintained.
Example:
The valid range is from 1024 to 524288 entries. The default is
Router(config)# ip flow-cache entries 65536 (64K).
131072

59
NetFlow Cache Size

Step 8 ip flow-cache timeout active minutes (Optional) Specifies flow cache timeout parameters.
The active keyword specifies the active flow timeout.
Example: The minutes argument specifies the number of minutes that an
active flow remains in the cache before the flow times out. The
Router(config)# ip flow-cache timeout range is from 1 to 60. The default is 30.
active 20
Step 9 ip flow-cache timeout inactive seconds (Optional) Specifies flow cache timeout parameters.
The inactive keyword specifies the inactive flow timeout.
Example: The seconds argument specifies the number of seconds that an
inactive flow remains in the cache before it times out. The range is
Router(config)# ip flow-cache timeout from 10 to 600. The default is 15.
inactive 130
Step 10 interface type number Specifies the interface that you want to enable NetFlow on and enters
interface configuration mode.
Example:

ingress --Captures traffic that is being received by the interface
Example: egress --Captures traffic that is being transmitted by the interface
Example:
configuration mode.
Note You need to use this command only if you need to enable
Step 13 Repeat Steps 10 through 12 for every interface This step is required for any other interfaces that you need to enable
that previously had NetFlow enabled on it. NetFlow on.
Step 14 end Exits the current configuration mode and enters privileged EXEC
mode.
Example:

60
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow

Data Export
Example Configuring Egress NetFlow Accounting, page 61
Example Configuring NetFlow Subinterface Support, page 61
Example Configuring NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations, page 62
Example Configuring NetFlow Version 5 Data Export, page 62
Example Configuring NetFlow Version 1 Data Export, page 63

The following example shows how to configure Egress NetFlow Accounting as described in the Egress
NetFlow Accounting Benefits NetFlow Accounting Simplified, page 46:
configure terminal
!
ip flow egress
!

The following examples show how to configure NetFlow Subinterface Support as described in the NetFlow
Subinterface Support Benefits Fine-Tuning Your Data Collection, page 48:
NetFlow Subinterface Support for Ingress (Received) Traffic on a Subinterface, page 61
NetFlow SubInterface Support for Egress (Transmitted) Traffic on a Subinterface, page 61
NetFlow Subinterface Support for Ingress (Received) Traffic on a Subinterface

configure terminal
!
ip flow ingress
!
NetFlow SubInterface Support for Egress (Transmitted) Traffic on a Subinterface

configure terminal
!
ip flow egress
!

61
NetFlow SubInterface Support for Egress (Transmitted) Traffic on a Subinterface
Note NetFlow performs additional checks for the status of each subinterface that requires more CPU processing
time and bandwidth. If you have several subinterfaces configured and you want to configure NetFlow data
capture on all of them, we recommend that you configure NetFlow on the main interface instead of on the
individual subinterfaces.

The following example shows how to configure the NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations feature as
described in the NetFlow Multiple Export Destinations Benefits, page 48:
configure terminal
!
!
Note You can configure a maximum of two export destinations for the main cache and for each aggregation
cache.
Example Configuring NetFlow Version 5 Data Export

The following example shows how to configure the NetFlow data export using the Version 5 export format
with the peer autonomous system information:
configure terminal
ip flow-export version 5 peer-as

exit
Exporting using source IP address 172.16.6.1
Version 5 flow records, peer-as
Router#

62

The following example shows how to configure the NetFlow data export using the Version 5 export format
with the peer autonomous system information:
configure terminal

exit
Router#
Note No autonomous system number or BGP next hop information is exported with the Version 1 export format.
Related Documents

NetFlow Commands Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference
NetFlow Version 9 Flow-Record Format NetFlow Version 9 Flow-Record Format
NetFlow Services Solutions Guide NetFlow Services Solutions Guide
NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP
Standards
Standards Title

63
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

RFCs
RFCs Title
No new or modified RFCs are supported by this --
feature, and support for existing RFCs has not been
modified by this feature.
Description Link
password.
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow

Data Export
feature.

64
Table 13 Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
Feature Name Releases Feature Information

Egress NetFlow Accounting 12.3(11)T 15.0(1)S The Egress NetFlow Accounting
feature allows NetFlow statistics
to be gathered on egress traffic
that is exiting the router. Previous
versions of NetFlow allow
statistics to be gathered only on
ingress traffic that is entering the
router.
egress and ip flow-egress input-
interface.
modified by this feature: flow-
sampler, match, show ip cache
flow, show ip cache verbose
flow, and show ip flow interface.
NetFlow Multiple Export 12.0(19)S 12.2(2)T 12.2(14)S The NetFlow Multiple Export
Destinations 15.0(1)S Destinations feature enables
configuration of multiple
destinations of the NetFlow data.
export destination, and show ip
flow export.
NetFlow Subinterface Support 12.0(22)S 12.2(14)S 12.2(15)T The NetFlow Subinterface

12.2(33)SB Support feature provides the
ability to enable NetFlow on a
per-subinterface basis.
ingress.
modified by this feature: show ip
interface.

65
Glossary

NetFlow v9 Export Format 12.0(24)S 12.2(18)S The NetFlow v9 Export Format,
12.2(27)SBC 12.2(18)SXF which is flexible and extensible,
12.3(1) 15.0(1)S provides the versatility needed to
support new fields and record
types. This format accommodates
new NetFlow-supported
technologies such as Multicast,
MPLS, NAT, and BGP next hop.
modified by this feature: debug
ip flow export, export, ip flow-
export, and show ip flow export.
Support for interface names 12.4(2)T The interface-names keyword

added to NetFlow data export2 for the ip flow-export command
configures NetFlow data export
to include the interface names
from the flows when it exports
the NetFlow cache entry to a
destination system.
Glossary
Autonomous system--A collection of networks under a common administration sharing a common routing
strategy. Autonomous systems are subdivided by areas. An autonomous system must be assigned a unique
16-bit number by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA).
Cisco Express Forwarding--A layer 3 IP switching technology that optimizes network performance and
scalability for networks with large and dynamic traffic patterns.
RFC 1163.
BGP next hop --IP address of the next hop to be used by a router to reach a certain destination.
distributed Cisco Express Forwarding--A type of Cisco Express Forwarding switching in which line cards
(such as Versatile Interface Processor (VIP) line cards) maintain identical copies of the Forwarding
Information Base (FIB) and adjacency tables. The line cards perform the express forwarding between port
adapters; this relieves the Route Switch Processor of involvement in the switching operation.
export packet --Type of packet built by a NetFlow-services-enabled device (for example, a router) that is
addressed to another device (for example, the NetFlow Collection Engine). The packet contains NetFlow
statistics. The other device processes (parses, aggregates, and stores information on IP flows) the packet.
fast switching --A Cisco feature in which a route cache is used to expedite packet switching through a
router.
2 This is a minor enhancement. Minor enhancements are not typically listed in Feature Navigator.

66
ports, and type of service, and with the same interface on which the flow is monitored. Ingress flows are
MPLS --Multiprotocol Label Switching. An industry standard for the forwarding of packets along a
normally routed path (sometimes called MPLS hop-by-hop forwarding).
NetFlow --A Cisco IOS application that provides statistics on packets flowing through the router. It is a
primary network accounting and security technology.
NetFlow Aggregation --A NetFlow feature that lets you summarize NetFlow export data on a Cisco IOS
router before the data is exported to a NetFlow data collection system such as the NetFlow Collection
Engine. This feature lowers bandwidth requirements for NetFlow export data and reduces platform
requirements for NetFlow data collection devices.
RP --Route Processor. A processor module in the Cisco 7000 series routers that contains the CPU, system
software, and most of the memory components that are used in the router. It is sometimes called a
Supervisory Processor.

67

68
Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches
This module contains information about and instructions for configuring NetFlow aggregation caches. The
NetFlow main cache is the default cache used to store the data captured by NetFlow. By maintaining one
or more extra caches, called aggregation caches, the NetFlow Aggregation feature allows limited
aggregation of NetFlow data export streams on a router. The aggregation scheme that you select
determines the specific kinds of data that are exported to a remote host.

Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches, page 69
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches, page 70
Information About Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches, page 71
How to Configure NetFlow Aggregation Caches, page 92
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches, page 98
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches, page 104
Glossary, page 105

Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches

Before you enable NetFlow, you must:
configure NetFlow on: Cisco Express Forwarding (CEF), distributed CEF, or fast switching
CPU resources

69
NetFlow Data Export
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches
If you intend to use Version 8 export format with an aggregation cache, configure Version 5 export format
for the main cache.
If you need autonomous system (AS) information from the aggregation, make sure to specify either the
peer-asor origin-as keyword in your export command if you have not configured an export format version.
You must explicitly enable each NetFlow aggregation cache by entering the enabled keyword from
aggregation cache configuration mode.
Router-based aggregation must be enabled for minimum masking.
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches

If your router is running a version of Cisco IOS prior to releases 12.2(14)S, 12.0(22)S, or 12.2(15)T the ip
If your router is running Cisco IOS release 12.2(14)S, 12.0(22)S, 12.2(15)T, or later the ip flow ingress
Memory Impact
Performance Impact
Configuring Egress NetFlow accounting with the ip flow egress command might adversely affect network
performance because of the additional accounting-related computation that occurs in the traffic-forwarding
path of the router.
NetFlow Data Export

Export bandwidth--Export bandwidth use increases for Version 9 (because of template flowsets)
versus Version 5. The increase in bandwidth usage versus Version 5 varies with the frequency with
which template flowsets are sent. The default is to resend templates every 20 packets, which has a
bandwidth cost of about 4 percent. If necessary, you can lower the resend rate with the ip flow-export
template refresh-rate packets command.
Performance impact--Version 9 slightly decreases overall performance, because generating and
maintaining valid template flowsets require additional processing.

Version 8 export format is available only for aggregation caches, and it cannot be expanded to support new
features.

70
NetFlow Aggregation Caches
Information About Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches
Information About Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches

NetFlow Aggregation Caches, page 71
NetFlow Data Export Format Versions 9 and 8 for NetFlow Aggregation Caches Overview, page
92
NetFlow Aggregation Caches

NetFlow Cache Aggregation Benefits, page 71
NetFlow Cache Aggregation Schemes, page 71
NetFlow Aggregation Scheme Fields, page 73
NetFlow AS Aggregation Scheme, page 75
NetFlow AS-ToS Aggregation Scheme, page 76
NetFlow Destination Prefix Aggregation Scheme, page 78
NetFlow Destination Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme, page 79
NetFlow Prefix Aggregation Scheme, page 81
NetFlow Prefix-Port Aggregation Scheme, page 82
NetFlow Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme, page 84
NetFlow Protocol Port Aggregation Scheme, page 86
NetFlow Protocol-Port-ToS Aggregation Scheme, page 87
NetFlow Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme, page 89
NetFlow Source Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme, page 90
NetFlow Cache Aggregation Benefits

Aggregation of export data is typically performed by NetFlow collection tools on management
workstations. Router-based aggregation allows limited aggregation of NetFlow export records to occur on
the router. Thus, you can summarize NetFlow export data on the router before the data is exported to a
NetFlow data collection system, which has the following benefits:
Reduces the bandwidth required between the router and the workstations
Reduces the number of collection workstations required
Improves performance and scalability on high flow-per-second routers
NetFlow Cache Aggregation Schemes

Cisco IOS NetFlow aggregation maintains one or more extra caches with different combinations of fields
that determine which flows are grouped together. These extra caches are called aggregation caches. The
combinations of fields that make up an aggregation cache are referred to as schemes. As flows expire from
the main cache, they are added to each enabled aggregation cache.
You can configure each aggregation cache with its individual cache size, cache ager timeout parameter,
export destination IP address, and export destination UDP port. As data flows expire in the main cache
(depending on the aggregation scheme configured), relevant information is extracted from the expired flow
and the corresponding flow entry in the aggregation cache is updated. The normal flow ager process runs
on each active aggregation cache the same way it runs on the main cache. On-demand aging is also

71
NetFlow Cache Aggregation Schemes
supported. Each aggregation cache contains different field combinations that determine which data flows
are grouped. The default aggregation cache size is 4096 bytes.
You configure a cache aggregation scheme through the use of arguments to the ip flow-aggregation cache
command. NetFlow supports the following five non-ToS based cache aggregation schemes:
Autonomous system (AS) aggregation scheme
Destination prefix aggregation scheme
Prefix aggregation scheme
Protocol port aggregation scheme
Source prefix aggregation scheme
The NetFlow Type of Service (ToS)-Based Router Aggregation feature introduced support for additional
cache aggregation schemes, all of which include the ToS byte as one of the fields in the aggregation cache.
The following are the six ToS-based aggregation schemes:
AS-ToS aggregation scheme
Destination prefix-ToS aggregation scheme
Prefix-port aggregation scheme
Prefix-ToS aggregation scheme
Protocol-port-ToS aggregation scheme
Source prefix-ToS aggregation scheme
The figure below shows an example of how the main NetFlow cache can be aggregated into multiple
aggregation caches based upon user-configured aggregation schemes.
Figure 11 Building a NetFlow Aggregation Cache

72
NetFlow Aggregation Scheme Fields
Note NetFlow Aggregation Scheme Fields, page 73 through NetFlow Cache Aggregation Schemes, page 71
illustrate the Version 8 export formats of the aggregation schemes listed above. Additional export formats
(for instance, Version 9) are also supported. If you are using Version 9, the formats will be different from
those shown in the figures. For more information about Version 9 export formats, see Configuring NetFlow
and NetFlow Data Export.

Each cache aggregation scheme contains field combinations that differ from any other cache aggregation
scheme. The combination of fields determines which data flows are grouped and collected when a flow
expires from the main cache. A flow is a set of packets that has common fields, such as the source IP
address, destination IP address, protocol, source and destination ports, type-of-service, and the same
interface on which the flow is monitored. To manage flow aggregation on your router, you need to
configure the aggregation cache scheme that groups and collects the fields from which you want to
examine data. The tables below show the NetFlow fields that are grouped and collected for non-ToS and
ToS based cache aggregation schemes.
The table below shows the NetFlow fields used in the non-TOS based aggregation schemes.
Table 14 NetFlow Fields Used in the Non-ToS Based Aggregations Schemes
Field AS Protocol Port Source Prefix Destination Prefix

Prefix
Source prefix X X
Source prefix X X
mask
Destination X X
prefix
Destination X X
prefix mask
Source app port X
Destination app X
port
Input interface X X X
Output X X X
interface
IP protocol X
Source AS X X X
Destination AS X X X

73
Field AS Protocol Port Source Prefix Destination Prefix

Prefix
First time X X X X X
stamp
Last time stamp X X X X X
Number of X X X X X
flows
Number of X X X X X
packets
Number of X X X X X
bytes
The table below shows the NetFlow fields used in the TOS based aggregation schemes.
Table 15 NetFlow Fields Used in the ToS Based Aggregation Schemes
Field AS-ToS Protocol Source Destination Prefix-ToS Prefix-Port

Port-ToS Prefix-ToS Prefix-ToS
Source prefix X X X
Source prefix X X X
mask
Destination X X X
prefix
Destination X X X
prefix mask
Source app X X
port
Destination X X
app port
Input X X X X X
interface
Output X X X X X
interface
IP protocol X X
Source AS X X X
Destination X X X
AS
ToS X X X X X X

74
NetFlow AS Aggregation Scheme
Field AS-ToS Protocol Source Destination Prefix-ToS Prefix-Port

Port-ToS Prefix-ToS Prefix-ToS
First time X X X X X
stamp
Last time X X X X X
stamp
Number of X X X X X
flows
Number of X X X X X
packets
Number of X X X X X
bytes
NetFlow AS Aggregation Scheme

The NetFlow AS aggregation scheme reduces NetFlow export data volume substantially and generates AS-
to-AS traffic flow data. The scheme groups data flows that have the same source BGP AS, destination BGP
AS, input interface, and output interface.
The aggregated NetFlow data export records report the following:
Source and destination BGP AS
Number of packets summarized by the aggregated record
Number of flows summarized by the aggregated record
Number of bytes summarized by the aggregated record
Source interface
Destination interface
Time stamp when the first packet was switched and time stamp when the last packet was switched
The figure below shows the data export format for the AS aggregation scheme. For a definition of the data
export terms used in the aggregation scheme, see the table below.
Figure 12 Data Export Format for AS Aggregation Scheme

75
NetFlow AS-ToS Aggregation Scheme
The table below lists definitions for the data export record fields used in the AS aggregation scheme.
Table 16 Data Export Record Field Definitions for AS Aggregation Scheme
Field Definition
Flows Number of main cache flows that were aggregated
Packets Number of packets in the aggregated flows
Bytes Number of bytes in the aggregated flows
First time stamp System uptime when the first packet was switched
Last time stamp System uptime when the last packet was switched
Source AS Autonomous system of the source IP address (peer

or origin)
Destination AS Autonomous system of the destination IP address

(peer or origin)
Source interface SNMP index of the input interface
Destination interface SNMP index of the output interface

The NetFlow AS-ToS aggregation scheme groups flows that have the same source BGP AS, destination
BGP AS, source and destination interfaces, and ToS byte. The aggregated NetFlow export record based on
the AS-ToS aggregation scheme reports the following:
Source BGP AS
Destination BGP AS
ToS byte
Number of bytes summarized by this aggregated record
Number of packets summarized by this aggregation record
Source and destination interface
This aggregation scheme is particularly useful for generating AS-to-AS traffic flow data, and for reducing
NetFlow export data volume substantially. The figure below shows the data export format for the AS-ToS

76
aggregation scheme. For a definition of the data export terms used in the aggregation scheme, see the table
below.
Figure 13 Data Export Format for AS-ToS Aggregation Scheme
The table below lists definitions for the data export record terms used in the AS-ToS aggregation scheme.
Table 17 Data Export Record Term Definitions for AS-ToS Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition

or origin)

(peer or origin)
ToS Type of service byte

77
NetFlow Destination Prefix Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition
PAD Zero field
Reserved Zero field
NetFlow Destination Prefix Aggregation Scheme

The destination prefix aggregation scheme generates data so that you can examine the destinations of
network traffic passing through a NetFlow-enabled device. The scheme groups data flows that have the
same destination prefix, destination prefix mask, destination BGP AS, and output interface.
Destination prefix
Destination prefix mask
Destination BGP AS
Output interface
The figure below shows the data export format for the destination prefix aggregation scheme. For a
definition of the data export terms used in the aggregation scheme, see the table below.
Figure 14 Destination Prefix Aggregation Data Export Record Format
The table below lists definitions for the data export record terms used in the destination prefix aggregation
scheme.

78
NetFlow Destination Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme
Table 18 Data Export Record Term Definitions for Destination Prefix Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition
Destination prefix Destination IP address ANDed with the destination

prefix mask
Destination mask bits Number of bits in the destination prefix
PAD Zero field

(peer or origin)
Reserved Zero field

The NetFlow destination prefix-ToS aggregation scheme groups flows that have the same destination
prefix, destination prefix mask, destination BGP AS, ToS byte, and output interface. The aggregated
NetFlow export record reports the following:
Destination AS
ToS byte
Output interface
This aggregation scheme is particularly useful for capturing data with which you can examine the
destinations of network traffic passing through a NetFlow-enabled device. The figure below shows the data

79
export format for the Destination prefix-ToS aggregation scheme. For a definition of the data export terms
used in the aggregation scheme, see the table below.
Figure 15 Data Export Format for Destination Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme
The table below lists definitions for the data export record terms used in the destination prefix-ToS
aggregation scheme.
Table 19 Data Export Record Term Definitions for Destination Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition

prefix mask
Dest mask bits Number of bits in the destination prefix

(peer or origin)

80
NetFlow Prefix Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition
Reserved Zero field
NetFlow Prefix Aggregation Scheme

The NetFlow prefix aggregation scheme generates data so that you can examine the sources and
destinations of network traffic passing through a NetFlow-enabled device. The scheme groups data flows
that have the same source prefix, destination prefix, source prefix mask, destination prefix mask, source
BGP AS, destination BGP AS, input interface, and output interface.
Source and destination prefix
Source and destination prefix mask
Source and destination BGP AS
Input and output interfaces
Time stamp when the first packet is switched and time stamp when the last packet is switched
The figure below shows the data export format for the prefix aggregation scheme. For a definition of the
data export terms used in the aggregation scheme, see the table below.
Figure 16 Data Export Format for Prefix Aggregation Scheme

81
NetFlow Prefix-Port Aggregation Scheme
The table below lists definitions for the data export record terms used in the prefix aggregation scheme.
Table 20 Data Export Record Terms and Definitions for Prefix Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition
Source prefix Source IP address ANDed with the source prefix

mask, or the prefix to which the source IP address
of the aggregated flows belongs

prefix mask
Source mask bits Number of bits in the source prefix
Reserved Zero field

or origin)

(peer or origin)

The NetFlow prefix-port aggregation scheme groups flows that have a common source prefix, source mask,
destination prefix, destination mask, source port and destination port when applicable, input interface,
output interface, protocol, and ToS byte. The aggregated NetFlow export record reports the following:
Source prefix
Source prefix mask
Destination prefix
Source port
Destination port
Source interface
Protocol

82
ToS byte
Number of packets summarized by the aggregation record
This aggregation scheme is particularly useful for capturing data with which you can examine the sources
and destinations of network traffic passing through a NetFlow-enabled device. The figure below shows the
data export record for the prefix-port aggregation scheme. For a definition of the data export terms used in
the aggregation scheme, see the table below.
Figure 17 Data Export Record for Prefix-Port Aggregation Scheme
The table below lists definitions for the data export record terms used in the prefix-port aggregation
scheme.
Table 21 Data Export Record Term Definitions for Prefix-Port Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition

83
NetFlow Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition


prefix mask
Protocol IP protocol byte
Source port Source UDP or TCP port number if applicable
Destination port Destination User Datagram Protocol (UDP) or TCP

port number

The NetFlow prefix-tos aggregation scheme groups together flows that have a common source prefix,
source mask, destination prefix, destination mask, source BGP AS, destination BGP AS, input interface,
output interface, and ToS byte. The aggregated NetFlow export record reports the following:
Source prefix
Source prefix mask
Destination prefix
Source AS
Destination AS
Source interface
ToS byte
This aggregation scheme is particularly useful for capturing data so that you can examine the sources and
destinations of network traffic passing through a NetFlow-enabled device. The figure below displays the

84
data export format for the prefix-tos aggregation scheme. For a definition of the data export terms used in
the aggregation scheme, see the table below.
Figure 18 Data Export Format for Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme
The table below lists definitions for the data export record terms used in the prefix-ToS aggregation
scheme.
Table 22 Data Export Record Term Definitions for Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition


prefix mask

85
NetFlow Protocol Port Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition
Pad Zero field

or origin)

(peer or origin)
NetFlow Protocol Port Aggregation Scheme

The NetFlow protocol port aggregation scheme captures data so that you can examine network usage by
traffic type. The scheme groups data flows with the same IP protocol, source port number, and (when
applicable) destination port number.
Source and destination port numbers
IP protocol (where 6 = TCP, 17 = UDP, and so on)
The figure below shows the data export format for the protocol port aggregation scheme. For a definition of
the data export terms used in the aggregation scheme, see the table below.
Figure 19 Data Export Format for Protocol Port Aggregation Scheme

86
NetFlow Protocol-Port-ToS Aggregation Scheme
The table below lists definitions for the data export record terms used in the protocol port aggregation
scheme.
Table 23 Data Export Record Term Definitions for Protocol Port Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition
PAD Zero field
Reserved Zero field

port number

The NetFlow protocol-port-tos aggregation scheme groups flows that have a common IP protocol, ToS
byte, source and (when applicable) destination port numbers, and source and destination interfaces. The
aggregated NetFlow Export record reports the following:
Source application port number
Source and destination interface
IP protocol
ToS byte

87
This aggregation scheme is particularly useful for capturing data so that you can examine network usage by
type of traffic. The figure below shows the data export format for the protocol-port-tos aggregation scheme.
For a definition of the data export terms used in the aggregation scheme, see the table below.
Figure 20 Data Export Format for Protocol-Port-ToS Aggregation Scheme
The table below lists definitions for the data export record terms used in the protocol-port-ToS aggregation
scheme.
Table 24 Data Export Record Term Definitions for Protocol-Port-ToS Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition
Reserved Zero field

port number

88
NetFlow Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition
NetFlow Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme

The NetFlow source prefix aggregation scheme captures data so that you can examine the sources of
network traffic passing through a NetFlow-enabled device. The scheme groups data flows that have the
same source prefix, source prefix mask, source BGP AS, and input interface.
Source prefix
Source prefix mask
Source BGP AS
Input interface
The figure below show the data export format for the source prefix aggregation scheme. For a definition of
the data export terms used in the aggregation scheme, see the table below.
Figure 21 Data Export Format for Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme
The table below lists definitions for the data export record terms used in the source prefix aggregation
scheme.

89
NetFlow Source Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme
Table 25 Data Export Record Term Definitions for Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition

PAD Zero field

or origin)
Reserved Zero field

The NetFlow source prefix-ToS aggregation scheme groups flows that have a common source prefix,
source prefix mask, source BGP AS, ToS byte, and input interface. The aggregated NetFlow export record
reports the following:
Source prefix
Source prefix mask
Source AS
ToS byte
Input interface
This aggregation scheme is particularly useful for capturing data so that you can examine the sources of
network traffic passing through a NetFlow-enabled device. The figure below show the data export format
for the source prefix-ToS aggregation scheme. For a definition of the data export terms used in the
aggregation scheme, see the table below.

90
Note When a router does not have a prefix for the source IP address in the flow, NetFlow uses 0.0.0.0 with 0
mask bits rather than making /32 entries. This prevents DOS attacks that use random source addresses from
thrashing the aggregation caches. This is also done for the destination in the destination prefix-ToS, the
prefix-ToS, and prefix-port aggregation schemes.
Figure 22 Data Export Format for Source Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme
The table below lists definitions for the data export record terms used in the source prefix-ToS aggregation
scheme.
Table 26 Data Export Record Term Definitions for Source Prefix-ToS Aggregation Scheme
Term Definition


91
NetFlow Data Export Format Versions 9 and 8 for NetFlow Aggregation Caches Overview
How to Configure NetFlow Aggregation Caches
Term Definition

or origin)
Reserved Zero field
NetFlow Data Export Format Versions 9 and 8 for NetFlow Aggregation

Caches Overview
Export formats available for NetFlow aggregation caches are the Version 9 export format and the Version 8
export format.
Multicast, Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS), and Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) next hop.
Version 9 export format enables you to use the same version for main and aggregation caches, and the
format is extendable, so you can use the same export format with future features.
Version 8--A format added to support data export from aggregation caches. Export datagrams contain
a subset of the usual Version 5 export data, which is valid for the particular aggregation cache scheme.
Version 8 is the default export version for aggregation caches when data export is configured.
The Version 9 export format is flexible and extensible, which provides the versatility needed for the
support of new fields and record types. You can use the Version 9 export format for both main and
aggregation caches.
The Version 8 export format was added to support data export from aggregation caches. This format allows
export datagrams to contain a subset of the Version 5 export data that is valid for the cache aggregation
scheme.
Refer to the NetFlow Data Export, page 70 section for more details.

Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches, page 92
Verifying the Aggregation Cache Configuration, page 96

Perform the steps in this required to enable NetFlow and configure a NetFlow aggregation cache.

92
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-aggregation cache {as | as-tos | bgp-nexthop-tos | destination-prefix | destination-prefix-tos
| prefix | prefix-port | prefix-tos | protocol-port | protocol-port-tos | source-prefix | source-prefix-
tos}
4. cache entries number
5. cache timeout active minutes
6. cache timeout inactive seconds
7. export destination {{ip-address | hostname} udp-port}
8. Repeat Step 7 once to configure a second export destination.
9. export version [9 | 8]
10. enabled
11. exit
14. exit
15. Repeat Steps 12 through 14 to enable NetFlow on other interfaces
16. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:

93

Step 3 ip flow-aggregation cache {as | as-tos | (Required) Specifies the aggregation cache scheme and enables
bgp-nexthop-tos | destination-prefix | aggregation cache configuration mode.
destination-prefix-tos | prefix | prefix-port
The as keyword configures the AS aggregation cache.
| prefix-tos | protocol-port | protocol-port-
tos | source-prefix | source-prefix-tos} The as-toskeyword configures the AS ToS aggregation cache.
The bgp-nexthop-tos keyword configures the BGP nexthop
aggregation cache.
Example: The destination-prefix keyword configures the destination prefix
aggregation cache.
The destination-prefix-tos keyword configures the destination prefix
ToS aggregation cache.
Example: The prefix keyword configures the prefix aggregation cache.
Router(config)# ip flow-aggregation The prefix-port keyword configures the prefix port aggregation
cache destination-prefix cache.
The prefix-tos keyword configures the prefix ToS aggregation cache.
The protocol-port keyword configures the protocol port aggregation
cache.
The protocol-port-tos keyword configures the protocol port ToS
aggregation cache.
The source-prefix keyword configures the source prefix aggregation
cache.
The source-prefix-tos keyword configures the source prefix ToS
aggregation cache.
Step 4 cache entries number (Optional) Configures aggregation cache operational parameters.
The entries number keyword-argument pair is the number of cached
entries allowed in the aggregation cache. The range is from 1024 to
Example:
524288. The default is 4096.
Router(config-flow-cache)# cache
entries 2048
Step 5 cache timeout active minutes (Optional) Configures aggregation cache operational parameters.
The timeout keyword dissolves the session in the aggregation cache.
Example: The active minutes keyword-argument pair specifies the number of
minutes that an entry is active. The range is from 1 to 60 minutes.
Router(config-flow-cache)# cache The default is 30 minutes.
timeout active 15
Step 6 cache timeout inactive seconds (Optional) Configures aggregation cache operational parameters.
The timeout keyword dissolves the session in the aggregation cache.
Example: The inactive secondskeyword-argument pair specifies the number of
seconds that an inactive entry stays in the aggregation cache before
Router(config-flow-cache)# cache the entry times out. The range is from 10 to 600 seconds. The default
timeout inactive 300
is 15 seconds.

94

Step 7 export destination {{ip-address | (Optional) Enables the exporting of information from NetFlow
hostname} udp-port} aggregation caches.
The ip-address | hostnameargument is the destination IP address or
hostname.
Example:
The port argument is the destination UDP port.
Router(config-flow-cache)# export
Step 8 Repeat Step 7 once to configure a second (Optional) You can configure a maximum of two export destinations for
export destination. each NetFlow aggregation cache.
Step 9 export version [9 | 8] (Optional) Specifies data export format Version.

Version 9 format.
Example:
Router(config-flow-cache)# export
version 9
Step 10 enabled (Required) Enables the aggregation cache.
Example:
Router(config-flow-cache)# enabled
Step 11 exit (Required) Exits NetFlow aggregation cache configuration mode and
returns to global configuration mode.
Example:
Step 12 interface interface-type interface-number (Required) Specifies the interface that you want to enable NetFlow on and
Example:
Router(config)# interface ethernet

0/0

ingress --captures traffic that is being received by the interface
Example: egress --captures traffic that is being transmitted by the interface.

95
Verifying the Aggregation Cache Configuration

configuration mode.
Step 15 Repeat Steps 12 through 14 to enable (Optional) --

NetFlow on other interfaces
Step 16 end Exits the current configuration mode and returns to privileged EXEC
mode.
Example:
Verifying the Aggregation Cache Configuration

Perform the steps in this optional task to verify that:
The NetFlow aggregation cache is operational
NetFlow Data Export for the aggregation cache is operational
To view the aggregation cache statistics.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip cache flow aggregation {as | as-tos | bgp-nexthop-tos | destination-prefix | destination-
prefix-tos | prefix | prefix-port | prefix-tos | protocol-port | protocol-port-tos | source-prefix |
source-prefix-tos}
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 show ip cache flow aggregation {as | as-tos | bgp-nexthop-tos | destination-prefix | destination-prefix-tos | prefix
| prefix-port | prefix-tos | protocol-port | protocol-port-tos | source-prefix | source-prefix-tos}
Use the show ip cache flow aggregation destination-prefix command to verify the configuration of an destination-
prefix aggregation cache. For example:
Example:
Router# show ip cache flow aggregation destination-prefix

1 chunk, 2 chunks added

96
Dst If Dst Prefix Msk AS Flows Pkts B/Pk Active

Null 0.0.0.0 /0 0 5 13 52 138.9
Et0/0.1 172.16.6.0 /24 0 1 1 56 0.0
Et1/0.1 172.16.7.0 /24 0 3 31K 1314 187.3
Et0/0.1 172.16.1.0 /24 0 16 104K 1398 188.4
Et1/0.1 172.16.10.0 /24 0 9 99K 1412 183.3
Router#
Use the show ip cache verbose flow aggregation source-prefixcommand to verify the configuration of a source-
prefix aggregation cache. For example:
Example:
Router# show ip cache verbose flow aggregation source-prefix
Src If Src Prefix Msk AS Flows Pkts B/Pk Active
Et1/0.1 172.16.10.0 /24 0 4 35K 1391 67.9
Et0/0.1 172.16.6.0 /24 0 2 5 88 60.6
Et1/0.1 172.16.7.0 /24 0 2 3515 1423 58.6
Et0/0.1 172.16.1.0 /24 0 2 20K 1416 71.9
Router#
Use the show ip cache verbose flow aggregation protocol-port command to verify the configuration of a protocol-
port aggregation cache. For example:
Example:
Router# show ip cache verbose flow aggregation protocol-port
Protocol Source Port Dest Port Flows Packets Bytes/Packet Active
0x01 0x0000 0x0000 6 52K 1405 104.3
0x11 0x0208 0x0208 1 3 52 56.9
0x01 0x0000 0x0800 2 846 1500 59.8
0x01 0x0000 0x0B01 2 10 56 63.0
Router#
Step 2 show ip flow export
Use the show ip flow export command to verify that NetFlow Data Export is operational for the aggregation cache.
For example:
Example:
Flow export v1 is disabled for main cache
Cache for protocol-port aggregation:
Exporting flows to 172.16.20.4 (991) 172.30.0.1 (991)

97
Configuring an AS Aggregation Cache Example
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches
Cache for source-prefix aggregation:

Cache for destination-prefix aggregation:
Router#
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation

Caches
Configuring an AS Aggregation Cache Example, page 98
Configuring a Destination Prefix Aggregation Cache Example, page 99
Configuring a Prefix Aggregation Cache Example, page 99
Configuring a Protocol Port Aggregation Cache Example, page 99
Configuring a Source Prefix Aggregation Cache Example, page 100
Configuring an AS-ToS Aggregation Cache Example, page 100
Configuring a Prefix-ToS Aggregation Cache Example, page 100
Configuring the Minimum Mask of a Prefix Aggregation Scheme Example, page 101
Configuring the Minimum Mask of a Destination Prefix Aggregation Scheme Example, page 101
Configuring the Minimum Mask of a Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme Example, page 101
Configuring NetFlow Version 9 Data Export for Aggregation Caches Example, page 102
Configuring NetFlow Version 8 Data Export for Aggregation Caches Example, page 102
Configuring an AS Aggregation Cache Example

The following example shows how to configure an AS aggregation cache with a cache size of 2046, an
inactive timeout of 200 seconds, a cache active timeout of 45 minutes, an export destination IP address of
10.42.42.1, and a destination port of 9992:
configure terminal
!
ip flow-aggregation cache as
cache entries 2046
cache timeout inactive 200
cache timeout active 45
export destination 10.42.42.1 9992
enabled
!
interface Ethernet0/0
ip flow ingress
!
end

98
Configuring a Destination Prefix Aggregation Cache Example
Configuring a Destination Prefix Aggregation Cache Example

The following example shows how to configure a destination prefix aggregation cache with a cache size of
2046, an inactive timeout of 200 seconds, a cache active timeout of 45 minutes, an export destination IP
address of 10.42.42.1, and a destination port of 9992:
configure terminal
ip flow-aggregation cache destination-prefix

cache entries 2046
enabled
!
ip flow ingress
!
end
Configuring a Prefix Aggregation Cache Example

The following example shows how to configure a prefix aggregation cache with a cache size of 2046, an
inactive timeout of 200 seconds, a cache active timeout of 45 minutes, an export destination IP address of
10.42.42.1, and a destination port of 9992:
configure terminal
ip flow-aggregation cache prefix

cache entries 2046
enabled
!
ip flow ingress
!
end
Configuring a Protocol Port Aggregation Cache Example

The following example shows how to configure a protocol port aggregation cache with a cache size of
configure terminal
ip flow-aggregation cache protocol-port

cache entries 2046

99
Configuring a Source Prefix Aggregation Cache Example
enabled
!
ip flow ingress
!
end
Configuring a Source Prefix Aggregation Cache Example

The following example shows how to configure a source prefix aggregation cache with a cache size of
configure terminal
ip flow-aggregation cache source-prefix

cache entries 2046
enabled
!
ip flow ingress
!
end
Configuring an AS-ToS Aggregation Cache Example

The following example shows how to configure an AS-ToS aggregation cache with a cache active timeout
of 20 minutes, an export destination IP address of 10.2.2.2, and a destination port of 9991:
configure terminal
ip flow-aggregation cache as-tos

enabled
!
ip flow ingress
!
end
Configuring a Prefix-ToS Aggregation Cache Example

The following example shows how to configure a prefix-ToS aggregation cache with an export destination
IP address of 10.4.4.4 and a destination port of 9995:
configure terminal
ip flow-aggregation cache prefix-tos

enabled
!

100
Configuring the Minimum Mask of a Prefix Aggregation Scheme Example
ip flow ingress
!
end
Configuring the Minimum Mask of a Prefix Aggregation Scheme Example

The following example shows how to configure the minimum mask for a prefix aggregation scheme:
configure terminal
ip flow-aggregation cache prefix

mask source minimum 24
mask destination minimum 28
enabled
!
ip flow ingress
!
end
Configuring the Minimum Mask of a Destination Prefix Aggregation Scheme

Example
The following example shows how to configure the minimum mask for a destination prefix aggregation
scheme:
configure terminal
ip flow-aggregation cache destination-prefix

mask destination minimum 32
enabled
!
ip flow ingress
!
end
Configuring the Minimum Mask of a Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme

Example
The following example shows how to configure the minimum mask for a source prefix aggregation
scheme:
configure terminal
ip flow-aggregation cache source-prefix

mask source minimum 30
enabled
!
ip flow ingress

101
Configuring NetFlow Version 9 Data Export for Aggregation Caches Example
!
end

The following example shows how to configure NetFlow Version 9 data export for an AS aggregation
cache scheme:
configure terminal
!
export template refresh-rate 10
export version 9
export template timeout-rate 60
enabled
!
ip flow ingress
!
end

The following example shows how to configure NetFlow Version 8 data export for an AS aggregation
cache scheme:
configure terminal
!
export version 8
enabled
!
ip flow ingress
!
end
Related Documents

The minimum information about and tasks required Getting Started with Configuring NetFlow and
for configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export NetFlow Data Export
NetFlow

102

Tasks for configuring Random Sampled NetFlow Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the
With SCTP
Standards
Standards Title
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

No new or modified MIBS are supported by this To locate and download MIBs for selected

103
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches
RFCs
RFCs Title
Description Link
content.
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation

Caches
feature.

104
Glossary
Table 27 Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Aggregation Caches

NetFlow ToS-Based Router 12.0(15)S 12.2(4)T 12.2(14)S The NetFlow ToS-Based Router
Aggregation 15.0(1)S Aggregation feature enables you
to limit router-based type of
service (ToS) aggregation of
NetFlow export data. The
aggregation of export data
provides a summarized NetFlow
export data that can be exported
to a collection device. The result
is lower bandwidth requirements
for NetFlow export data and
reduced platform requirements
for NetFlow data collection
devices.
aggregation cache, show ip
cache verbose flow aggregation,
and show ip flow export.
NetFlow Minimum Prefix Mask 12.0(11)S 12.1(2)T The NetFlow Minimum Prefix
for Router-Based Aggregation Mask for Router-Based
Aggregation feature allows you to
set a minimum mask size for
prefix aggregation, destination
prefix aggregation, and source
prefix aggregation schemes.
aggregation cache, mask
destination, mask source, and
show ip cache flow aggregation.
Glossary
CEF --Cisco Express Forwarding. A Layer 3 IP switching technology that optimizes network performance
dCEF --Distributed Cisco Express Forwarding. Type of CEF switching in which line cards maintain an
identical copy of the forwarding information base (FIB) and adjacency tables. The line cards perform the
express forwarding between port adapters; this relieves the Route Switch Processor of involvement in the
switching operation.

105
export packet --Type of packet built by a device (for example, a router) with NetFlow services enabled.
The packet contains NetFlow statistics and is addressed to another device (for example, the NetFlow
Collection Engine). The other device processes the packet (parses, aggregates, and stores information on IP
flows).
ports, and type-of-service, and the same interface on which flow is monitored. Ingress flows are associated
with the input interface, and egress flows are associated with the output interface.
flowset --Collection of flow records that follow the packet header in an export packet. A flowset contains
information that must be parsed and interpreted by the NetFlow Collection Engine. There are two different
types of flowsets: template flowsets and data flowsets. An export packet contains one or more flowsets, and
both template and data flowsets can be mixed in the same export packet.
NetFlow --Cisco IOS accounting feature that maintains per-flow information.
QoS --quality of service. A measure of performance for a transmission system that reflects its transmission
quality and service availability.
template flowset --One or more template records that are grouped in an export packet.
ToS --type of service. The second byte in the IP header. It indicates the desired quality of service (QoS) for
a particular datagram.

106
Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select
the Network Traffic to Track
This module contains information about and instructions for selecting the network traffic to track through
the use of NetFlow filtering or sampling. The NetFlow Input Filtering and Random Sampled NetFlow
features, described in this module, allow you to collect data from specific subsets of traffic.
The NetFlow Input Filters feature provides NetFlow data for a specific subset of traffic by letting you
create filters to select flows for NetFlow processing. For example, you can select flows from a
specific group of hosts.
The Random Sampled NetFlow feature provides NetFlow data for a subset of traffic in a Cisco router
by processing only one randomly selected packet out of n sequential packets (n is a user-configurable
parameter).
NetFlow is a Cisco IOS application that provides statistics on packets that flow through the router. It is

Prerequisites for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track, page 108
Restrictions for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track, page 108
Information About Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track, page
109
How to Configure NetFlow Filtering or Sampling, page 112
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow Filtering and Sampling, page 122
Feature Information for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track,
page 126
Glossary, page 128


107
Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the Network Traffic to Track
Prerequisites for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track
Prerequisites for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to

Select Network Traffic to Track
Prerequisites for NetFlow Input Filters
Before you can configure the NetFlow Input Filters feature, you must:
Configure Cisco Express Forwarding (CEF) switching or distributed Cisco Express Forwarding
(dCEF) switching on the router and on the interfaces that you want to enable NetFlow Input Filters on
(fast switching is not supported).
Create traffic classes and define NetFlow sampler maps.
Note The NetFlow Input Filters feature is supported in the Version 5 and Version 9 NetFlow export formats.
Prerequisites for Random Sampled NetFlow

Before you can configure the Random Sampled NetFlow feature, you must:
Configure Cisco Express Forwarding (CEF) switching or distributed CEF (dCEF) switching on the
router and on the interfaces that you want to enable Random Sampled NetFlow on (fast switching is
not supported).
Configure NetFlow Version 5 or Version 9 data export if you want to export NetFlow data (otherwise,
NetFlow data is visible in the cache, but is not exported).
Configure NetFlow Version 9 if you want to use sampler option templates or view NetFlow sampler
IDs.
Restrictions for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to

Restrictions for NetFlow Input Filters
On Cisco 7500 platforms, the NetFlow Input Filters feature is supported only in distributed mode.
Restrictions for Random Sampled NetFlow

If full NetFlow is enabled on an interface, it takes precedence over Random Sampled NetFlow (which will
thus have no effect). This means that you should disable full NetFlow on an interface before enabling
Random Sampled NetFlow on that interface.
Enabling Random Sampled NetFlow on a physical interface does not automatically enable Random
Sampled NetFlow on subinterfaces; you must explicitly configure it on subinterfaces. Also, disabling
Random Sampled NetFlow on a physical interface (or a subinterface) does not enable full NetFlow. This

108
Roadmap Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the Network Traffic to Track
Information About Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track
restriction prevents the transition to full NetFlow from overwhelming the physical interface (or
subinterface). If you want full NetFlow, you must explicitly enable it.
If you enable Random Sampled NetFlow with Version 5 data export, sampler option templates are not
exported, and sampler IDs are exported in the least significant three bits of the last byte of the Version 5
record pad field. Use NetFlow Version 9 if you want to use sampler option templates or view NetFlow
sampler IDs.
Information About Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to

Roadmap Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the Network Traffic to Track, page 109
Filtering and Sampling of NetFlow Traffic, page 109
NetFlow Input Filters Flow Classification, page 111
Random Sampled NetFlow Sampling Mode, page 112
Random Sampled NetFlow The NetFlow Sampler, page 112
Roadmap Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select the Network Traffic

to Track
The table below provides a roadmap that includes links to associated information and configuration
instruction for selecting traffic of interest.
Table 28 Roadmap: Selecting the Network Traffic to Track Using Sampling and Filtering
Traffic of Interest Links to Associated Information and Configuration Instructions

A specific subset of NetFlow traffic for the purpose of class- Associated information:
based traffic analysis and monitoring (including on-network or Configuration instructions:
off-network traffic)
Statistical sampling of network traffic for traffic engineering or Associated information:

capacity planning purposes Configuration instructions:
Filtering and Sampling of NetFlow Traffic

NetFlow provides highly granular per-flow traffic statistics in a Cisco router. A flow is a unidirectional
stream of packets that arrive at the router on the same subinterface, have the same source and destination IP
addresses, Layer 4 protocol, TCP/UDP source and destination ports, and the same type of service (ToS)
byte in the IP headers. The router accumulates NetFlow statistics in a NetFlow cache and can export them
to an external device (such as the Cisco Networking Services (CNS) NetFlow Collection Engine) for
further processing.
Full NetFlow accounts for all traffic entering the subinterface on which it is enabled. But in some cases,
you might gather NetFlow data on only a subset of this traffic. The Random Sampled NetFlow feature and
the NetFlow Input Filters feature each provide ways to limit incoming traffic to only traffic of interest for
NetFlow processing. Random Sampled NetFlow provides NetFlow data for a subset of traffic in a Cisco
router by processing only one randomly selected packet out of n sequential packets. The NetFlow Input

109
Filters feature provides the capability to gather NetFlow data on only a specific user-defined subset of
traffic.
Note Random Sampled NetFlow is more statistically accurate than Sampled NetFlow. NetFlows ability to
sample packets was first provided by a feature named Sampled NetFlow. The methodology that the
Sampled NetFlow feature uses is deterministic sampling, which selects every nth packet for NetFlow
processing on a per-interface basis. For example, if you set the sampling rate to 1 out of 100 packets, then
Sampled NetFlow samples the 1st, 101st, 201st, 301st, and so on packets. Sampled NetFlow does not allow
random sampling and thus can make statistics inaccurate when traffic arrives in fixed patterns.
Note The Random Sampled NetFlow algorithms are applied after input filtering.
The table below compares the NetFlow Input Filters feature and the NetFlow Random Sampled feature.
Table 29 Comparison of the NetFlow Input Filters Feature and the Random Sampled NetFlow Feature
Comparison Category NetFlow Input Filters Feature Random Sampled NetFlow Feature
Brief description This feature enables you to gather This feature provides NetFlow data for a
NetFlow data on only a specific subset of subset of traffic in a Cisco router by
traffic. You do this by creating filters to processing only one randomly selected
select flows for NetFlow processing. For packet out of n sequential packets (n is a
example, you can select flows from a user-configurable parameter). Packets are
specific group of hosts. This feature also sampled as they arrive (before any
lets you select various sampling rates for NetFlow cache entries are made for those
selected flows. packets).
Main uses You can use this feature for class-based You can use this feature for traffic
traffic analysis and monitoring on- engineering, capacity planning, and
network or off-network traffic. applications where full NetFlow is not
needed for an accurate view of network
traffic.
Export format support This feature is supported in the Version 5 This feature is supported in the Version 5
and Version 9 NetFlow export formats. and Version 9 NetFlow export formats.
Cisco IOS release support 12.3(4)T. 12.3(2)T, 12.2(18)S, and 12.0(26)S.

110
NetFlow Input Filters Flow Classification
Subinterface support You can configure NetFlow Input Filters You can configure the Random Sampled
per subinterface as well as per physical NetFlow feature per subinterface as well
interface. as per physical interface.
You can select more than one filter per Traffic is collected only on the
subinterface and have all of the filters run subinterfaces on which Random Sampled
simultaneously. NetFlow is configured. As with full
NetFlow, enabling Random Sampled
NetFlow on a physical interface does not
enable Random Sampled NetFlow on
subinterfaces automatically--you must
explicitly configure it on the
subinterfaces.
Memory impact This feature requires no additional This feature allows a smaller NetFlow
memory. It allows you to use a smaller cache than full NetFlow, because it
NetFlow cache than full NetFlow, significantly reduces the number of
because it significantly reduces the flows. This feature requires an
number of flows. This feature requires an insignificant amount of memory for each
insignificant amount of memory for each configured NetFlow sampler.
configured NetFlow sampler.
Performance impact Accounting of classified traffic saves Statistical traffic sampling substantially
router resources by reducing the number reduces consumption of router resources
of flows being processed and exported. (especially CPU resources) while
The amount of bandwidth saved depends providing valuable NetFlow data.
on the usage and the class-map criteria.
This feature substantially reduces the
However, performance might degrade impact of NetFlow data export on
depending on the number and complexity interface traffic. For example, a sampling
of class maps configured in a policy. rate of 1 out of 100 packets reduces the
export of NetFlow data by about 50
percent.

For the NetFlow Input Filters feature, classification of packets can be based on any of the following: IP
source and destination addresses, Layer 4 protocol and port numbers, incoming interface, MAC address, IP
Precedence, DSCP value, Layer 2 information (such as Frame-Relay DE bits or Ethernet 802.1p bits), and
Network-Based Application Recognition (NBAR) information. The packets are classified (filtered) on the
above criteria, and flow accounting is applied to them on subinterfaces.
The filtering mechanism uses the Modular QoS Command-Line Interface (MQC) to classify flows. You
can create multiple filters with matching samplers on a per-subinterface basis. For example, you can
subdivide subinterface traffic into multiple classes based on type of service (ToS) values or destination
prefixes (or both). For each class, you can also configure sampling at a different rate, using higher rates for
higher-priority classes of traffic and lower rates for lower-priority ones.
MQC has many policies (actions) such as bandwidth rate and queuing management. These policies are
applied only if a packet matches a criterion in a class map that is applied to the subinterface. A class map
contains a set of match clauses and instructions on how to evaluate the clauses and acts as a filter for the
policies, which are applied only if a packets content satisfies the match clause. The NetFlow Input Filters

111
Random Sampled NetFlow Sampling Mode
How to Configure NetFlow Filtering or Sampling
feature adds NetFlow accounting to the MQC infrastructure, which means that flow accounting is done on a
packet only if it satisfies the match clauses.
Two types of filter are available:
ACL-based flow-mask filters
Fields of filter (source IP address, destination IP address, source application port, destination
application port, port protocol, ToS bits, and TCP flags)

Sampling mode makes use of an algorithm that selects a subset of traffic for NetFlow processing. In the
random sampling mode that the Random Sampled NetFlow feature uses, incoming packets are randomly
selected so that one out of each n sequential packets is selected on average for NetFlow processing. For
example, if you set the sampling rate to 1 out of 100 packets, then NetFlow might sample the 5th packet
and then the 120th, 199th, 302nd, and so on. This sample configuration provides NetFlow data on 1 percent
of total traffic. The n value is a parameter from 1 to 65535 packets that you can configure.
Random Sampled NetFlow The NetFlow Sampler

A NetFlow sampler map defines a set of properties (such as the sampling rate and NetFlow sampler name)
for NetFlow sampling. Each NetFlow sampler map can be applied to one or many subinterfaces as well as
physical interfaces. You can define up to eight NetFlow sampler maps.
For example, you can create a NetFlow sampler map named mysampler1 with the following properties:
random sampling mode and a sampling rate of 1 out of 100 packets. This NetFlow sampler map can be
applied to any number of subinterfaces, each of which would refer to mysampler1 to perform NetFlow
sampling. Traffic from these subinterfaces is merged (from a sampling point of view). This introduces even
more "randomness" than random per-subinterface NetFlow sampling does, but statistically it provides the
same sampling rate of 1 out of 100 packets for each participating subinterface.
The sampling in random sampled NetFlow is done by NetFlow samplers. A NetFlow sampler is defined as
an instance of a NetFlow sampler map that has been applied to a physical interface or subinterface. If full
NetFlow is configured on a physical interface, it overrides random sampled NetFlow on all subinterfaces of
this physical interface.
How to Configure NetFlow Filtering or Sampling

Note You need to configure input filtering before you apply the random sampled NetFlow algorithms.
Configuring NetFlow Input Filters to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export, page 112
Configuring Random Sampled NetFlow to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export, page 118
Configuring NetFlow Input Filters to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data

Export
Perform the following tasks to configure NetFlow input filters. Configuring NetFlow input filters reduces
the impact of NetFlow data export.

112
Creating a Class Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering
Creating a Class Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering, page 113
Creating a Sampler Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering, page 114
Creating a Class-Based Policy Containing NetFlow Sampling Actions, page 115
Applying a Policy Containing NetFlow Sampling Actions to an Interface, page 117
Creating a Class Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering
Perform the following steps to create a class map for a policy map for NetFlow input filtering.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. class-map class-map-name [match-all | match-any]
4. match access-group access-group
5. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 class-map class-map-name [match-all | Creates a class map to be used for matching packets to a specified class.
match-any]
The class-map-name argument is the name of the class for the class
map. The name can be a maximum of 40 alphanumeric characters.
The class name is used for both the class map and for configuring
Example:
policy for the class in the policy map.
Router(config)# class-map The match-all | match-anykeywords determine how packets are
my_high_importance_class evaluated when multiple match criteria exist. Packets must either
meet all of the match criteria (match-all) or only one of the match
criteria (match-any) to be considered a member of the class.
Entering the class-mapcommand enables class-map configuration mode,
in which you can enter one of the match commands to configure the match
criteria for this class.

113
Creating a Sampler Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering

Step 4 match access-group access-group Configures the match criteria for a class map on the basis of the specified
access control list (ACL).
The access-group argument is a numbered ACL whose contents are
Example:
used as the match criteria against which packets are checked to
Router(config-cmap)# match access- determine if they belong to this class. An ACL number can be a
group 101 number from 1 to 2699.
mode.
Example:
Router(config-cmap)# end
Creating a Sampler Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering
Perform the following steps to create a sampler map for a policy map for NetFlow input filtering.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. flow-sampler-map sampler-map-name
4. mode random one-out-of packet-interval
5. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:

114
Creating a Class-Based Policy Containing NetFlow Sampling Actions

Step 3 flow-sampler-map sampler-map-name Defines a statistical sampling NetFlow export flow sampler map.
The sampler-map-name argument is the name of the flow sampler
map to be defined.
Example:
Entering the flow-sampler-map command enables the flow sampler
Router(config)# flow-sampler-map
my_high_sampling configuration mode.
Step 4 mode random one-out-of packet-interval Specifies a statistical sampling NetFlow export random sampling mode
and a packet interval.
The random keyword specifies that sampling uses the random
Example:
sampling mode.
Router(config-sampler-map)# mode The one-out-of packet-interval argument-keyword pair specifies
random one-out-of 100
the packet interval (one out of every npackets) from which to
sample. For n, you can specify from 1 to 65535 (packets).
mode.
Example:
Router(config-sampler-map)# end

Perform thefollowing steps to create a class-based policy that contains NetFlow sampling actions.
You can assign only one NetFlow input filters sampler to a class. Assigning a subsequent NetFlow input
filters sampler to a class overwrites the previous sampler. Removing a NetFlow sampler map also removes
the NetFlow input filters sampler from the corresponding policy map.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. policy-map policy-map-name
4. class {class-name | class-default}
5. netflow-sampler sampler-map-name
6. end

115
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 policy-map policy-map-name Creates or modifies a policy map that can be attached to one or more
interfaces to specify a service policy.
The policy-map-name argument is the name of the policy map. The
Example:
name can be a maximum of 40 alphanumeric characters.
Router(config)# policy-map mypolicymap
Entering the policy-mapcommand enables quality of service (QoS) policy-
map configuration mode, in which you can configure or modify the class
policies for that policy map.
Step 4 class {class-name | class-default} Specifies the name of the class whose policy you want to create or change
or specifies the default class (commonly known as the class-default class)
before you configure its policy.
Example:
The class-name argument is the name of the class for which you want
Router(config-pmap)# class to configure or modify policy.
my_high_importance_class The class-default keyword specifies the default class so that you can
configure or modify its policy.
Entering the class command enables QoS policy-map class configuration
mode.
Step 5 netflow-sampler sampler-map-name Enables a NetFlow input filter sampler.

The sampler-map-name argument is the name of the NetFlow sampler
map to apply to the class.
Example:
You can assign only one NetFlow input filter sampler to a class. Assigning
Router(config-pmap-c)# netflow-
sampler high_sampling another NetFlow input filter sampler to a class overwrites the previous one.
mode.
Example:
Router(config-pmap-c)# end

116
Applying a Policy Containing NetFlow Sampling Actions to an Interface
Applying a Policy Containing NetFlow Sampling Actions to an Interface

Perform the following steps to apply a policy containing NetFlow sampling actions to an interface.
After you define a service policy with the policy-mapcommand, you use the service-policy command in
interface configuration mode to attach it to one or more interfaces, thus specifying the service policy for
those interfaces. Although you can assign the same service policy to multiple interfaces, each interface can
have only one service policy attached. You can apply the service policy only in the input direction.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
4. service-policy {input | output} policy-map-name
5. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 interface interface-type interface-number Specifies the interface and enters interface configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config)# interface POS 1/0
Step 4 service-policy {input | output} policy- Attaches a policy map to an input interface or virtual circuit (VC), or an
map-name output interface or VC, to be used as the service policy for that interface or
VC.
The input keyword attaches the specified policy map to the input
Example:
interface or input VC.
Router(config-if)# service-policy The output keyword attaches the specified policy map to the output
input mypolicymap
interface or output VC.
The policy-map-name is the name of a service policy map (created
through use of the policy-map command) to be attached. The name can
be a maximum of 40 alphanumeric characters.

117
Configuring Random Sampled NetFlow to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export
Troubleshooting Tips

Step 5 end Exits the current configuration mode and returns to privileged EXEC mode.
Example:
Troubleshooting Tips, page 118
Use the debug flow-sampler class-basedcommand to display debugging output for NetFlow input filters.
Configuring Random Sampled NetFlow to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow

Data Export
Perform the following tasks to configure and verify the configuration for the Random Sampled NetFlow
feature:
Defining a NetFlow Sampler Map, page 118
Applying a NetFlow Sampler Map to an Interface, page 119
Verifying the Configuration of Random Sampled NetFlow, page 120
Defining a NetFlow Sampler Map

Perform the following task to define a NetFlow sampler map.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
4. mode random one-out-of sampling-rate
5. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable

118
Applying a NetFlow Sampler Map to an Interface

Example:
Step 3 flow-sampler-map sampler-map-name Defines a NetFlow sampler map and enters flow sampler map
configuration mode.
The sampler-map-name argument is the name of the NetFlow
Example:
sampler map to be defined.
mysampler1
Step 4 mode random one-out-of sampling-rate Enables random mode and specifies a sampling rate for the NetFlow
sampler.
The random keyword specifies that sampling uses the random
Example:
mode.
Router(config-sampler)# mode random one- The one-out-of sampling-rate keyword-argument pair specifies
out-of 100
the sampling rate (one out of every n packets) from which to
sample. For n, you can specify from 1 to 65535 (packets).
mode.
Example:
Router(config-sampler)# end
Applying a NetFlow Sampler Map to an Interface

Perform the following task to apply a NetFlow sampler map to an interface.
You can apply a NetFlow sampler map to a physical interface (or a subinterface) to create a NetFlow
sampler.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
4. flow-sampler sampler-map-name
5. end

119
Verifying the Configuration of Random Sampled NetFlow
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 interface interface-type interface-number Specifies the interface and enters interface configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config)# ethernet 1/0.2
Step 4 flow-sampler sampler-map-name Applies a NetFlow sampler map to the interface to create the NetFlow
sampler.
Example:
sampler map to apply to the interface.
Router(config-if)# flow-sampler mysampler1
mode.
Example:

Perform the following tasks to verify the configuration of the Random Sampled NetFlow feature.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show flow-sampler
3. show ip flow export template
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 show flow-sampler

120
Use this command to display attributes (including mode, sampling rate, and number of sampled packets) of one or all
Random Sampled NetFlow samplers to verify the sampler configuration. For example:
Example:
Router# show flow-sampler

Sampler : mysampler1, id : 1, packets matched : 10, mode : random sampling mode
sampling interval is : 100
Sampler : myflowsampler2, id : 2, packets matched : 5, mode : random sampling mode
To verify attributes for a particular NetFlow sampler, use the show flow-sampler sampler-map-namecommand. For
example, enter the following for a NetFlow sampler named mysampler1:
Example:
Router# show flow-sampler mysampler1

Use this command to display additional NetFlow fields in the header when Random Sampled NetFlow is configured.
For example:
Example:

...
BGP: BGP NextHop
Et1/0 8.8.8.8 Et0/0* 9.9.9.9 01 00 10 3
0000 /8 302 0800 /8 300 3.3.3.3 100 0.1
BGP: 2.2.2.2 Sampler: 1 Class: 1 FFlags: 01
This example shows the NetFlow output of the show ip cache verbose flow command in which the sampler, class-id,
and general flags are set. What is displayed for a flow depends on what flags are set in the flow. If the flow was
captured by a sampler, the output shows the sampler ID. If the flow was marked by MQC, the display includes the
class ID. If any general flags are set, the output includes the flags.
NetFlow flags (FFlags) that might appear in the show ip cache verbose flow command output are:
FFlags: 01 (#define FLOW_FLAGS_OUTPUT 0x0001)--Egress flow
FFlags: 02 (#define FLOW_FLAGS_DROP 0x0002)--Dropped flow (for example, dropped by an ACL)
FFlags: 04 (#define FLOW_FLAGS_MPLS 0x0004)--MPLS flow
FFlags: 08 (#define FLOW_FLAGS_IPV6 0x0008)--IPv6 flow
FFlags: 10 (#define FLOW_FLAGS_RSVD 0x0010)--Reserved
IPv6 and RSVD FFlags are seldom used. If FFlags is zero, the line is omitted from the output. If multiple flags are
defined (logical ORed together), then both sets of flags are displayed in hexadecimal format.
Step 3 show ip flow export template
Use this command to display the statistics for the NetFlow data export (such as template timeout and refresh rate) for
the template-specific configurations. For example:

121
Example Configuring NetFlow Input Filters to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export
Example:
Router# show ip flow export template

Template Options Flag = 0
Total number of Templates added = 0
Total active Templates = 0
Flow Templates active = 0
Flow Templates added = 0
Option Templates active = 0
Option Templates added = 0
Template ager polls = 0
Option Template ager polls = 0
Main cache version 9 export is enabled
Template export information
Template timeout = 30
Template refresh rate = 20
Option export information
Option timeout = 30
Option refresh rate = 20
Use the debug flow-samplercommand to display debugging output for the Random Sampled NetFlow
feature.
Configuration Examples for Configuring NetFlow Filtering and

Sampling
Example Configuring NetFlow Input Filters to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export, page 122
Example Configuring Random Sampled NetFlow to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export,
page 124
Example Configuring NetFlow Input Filters to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow

Data Export
Example Creating a Class Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering, page 122
Example Creating a Sampler Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering, page 123
Example Creating a Policy Containing NetFlow Sampling Actions, page 123
Example Applying a Policy to an Interface, page 123
Example Creating a Class Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering
The following example shows how to create a class map for a policy map for NetFlow input filtering. In the
example, class maps named my_high_importance_class and my_medium_importance_class are created.
configure terminal

122
Example Creating a Sampler Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering
!
class-map my_high_importance_class
match access-group 101
exit
!
class-map my_medium_importance_class
end
Example Creating a Sampler Map for a Policy Map for NetFlow Input Filtering
The following example shows how to create a sampler map for a policy map for NetFlow input filtering. In
the following example, sampler maps called my_high_sampling, my_medium sampling, and
my_low_samplng are created for use with a policy map for NetFlow input filtering.
configure terminal
!
flow-sampler-map my_high_sampling
mode random one-out-of 1
exit
!
flow-sampler-map my_medium_sampling
exit
!
flow-sampler-map my_low_sampling
end
Example Creating a Policy Containing NetFlow Sampling Actions

The following example shows how to create a class-based policy containing three NetFlow sampling
actions. In this example, a sampling action named my_high_sampling is applied to a class named
my_high_importance_class, a sampling action named my_medium_sampling is applied to a class named
my_medium_importance_class, and a sampling action named my_low_sampling is applied to the default
class.
configure terminal
!
policy-map mypolicymap
class my_high_importance_class
netflow sampler my_high_sampling
exit
!
class my_medium_importance_class
netflow-sampler my_medium_sampling
exit
!
class class-default
netflow-sampler my_low_sampling
end
Example Applying a Policy to an Interface

The following example shows how to apply a policy containing NetFlow sampling actions to an interface.
In this example, a policy named mypolicymap is attached to interface POS1/0 and also to interface
ATM2/0.
configure terminal
!
interface POS1/0
service-policy input mypolicymap
exit

123
Example Configuring Random Sampled NetFlow to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export
Example Defining a NetFlow Sampler Map
!
interface ATM2/0
service-policy input mypolicymap
end
Example Configuring Random Sampled NetFlow to Reduce the Impact of

NetFlow Data Export
Example Defining a NetFlow Sampler Map, page 124
Example Applying a NetFlow Sampler Map to an Interface, page 124
Example Defining a NetFlow Sampler Map

The following example shows how to define a NetFlow sampler map named mysampler1:
configure terminal
!
flow-sampler-map mysampler1
end
Example Applying a NetFlow Sampler Map to an Interface

The following example shows how to enable CEF switching and apply a NetFlow sampler map named
mysampler1 to Ethernet interface 1 to create a NetFlow sampler on that interface:
configure terminal
!
ip cef
!
flow-sampler mysampler1
end
Related Documents

NetFlow commands Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference

124

Tasks for configuring MPLS Aware NetFlow Configuring MPLS Aware NetFlow
With SCTP
Standards
Standards Title
feature.
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

None To locate and download MIBs for selected
platforms, Cisco IOS releases, and feature sets, use
Cisco MIB Locator found at the following URL:

125
Feature Information for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track
RFCs
RFCs Title
feature.
Description Link
password.
Feature Information for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling

to Select Network Traffic to Track
feature.

126
Feature Information for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track
Table 30 Feature Information for Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to Select Network Traffic to Track

NetFlow Input Filters 12.3(4)T, 12.2(25)S 12.2(27)SBC The NetFlow Input Filters feature
15.0(1)S provides NetFlow data for a
specific subset of traffic by letting
you create filters to select flows
for NetFlow processing. For
example, you can select flows
from a specific group of hosts.
This feature also lets you select
various sampling rates for
selected flows. The NetFlow
Input Filters feature is used, for
example, for class-based traffic
analysis and monitoring on-
network or off-network traffic.
introduced or modified by this
feature: netflow-sampler and
debug flow-sampler.

127
Glossary

Random Sampled NetFlow 12.3(4)T, 12.2(18)S, 12.0(26)S, Random Sampled NetFlow
12.2(27)SBC 12.2(33)SRC provides NetFlow data for a
subset of traffic in a Cisco router
by processing only one randomly
selected packet out of n
sequential packets (n is a user-
configurable parameter). Packets
are sampled as they arrive (before
any NetFlow cache entries are
made for those packets).
Statistical traffic sampling
substantially reduces
consumption of router resources
(especially CPU resources) while
providing valuable NetFlow data.
The main uses of Random
Sampled NetFlow are traffic
engineering, capacity planning,
and applications where full
NetFlow is not needed for an
accurate view of network traffic.
In Cisco IOS Release
12.2(33)SRC, this feature was
enhanced to support IPv6 unicast
and IPv4 multicast functionality.
introduced by this feature: debug
flow-sampler, flow-sampler,
flow-sampler-map, mode (flow
sampler map configuration),
and show flow-sampler.
export.
Glossary
ACL --Access control list. A roster of users and groups of users kept by a router. The list is used to control
access to or from the router for a number of services.
BGP --Border Gateway Protocol. Interdomain routing protocol that replaces Exterior Gateway Protocol
RFC 1163.
CEF --Cisco Express Forwarding. Layer 3 IP switching technology that optimizes network performance

128
dCEF --Distributed Cisco Express Forwarding. A type of CEF switching in which line cards (such as
fast switching --Cisco feature in which a route cache is used to expedite packet switching through a router.
flow --Unidirectional stream of packets between a given source and destination. Source and destination are
each defined by a network-layer IP address and transport-layer source and destination port numbers.
MQC --Modular QoS command-line interface. A CLI structure that lets you create traffic polices and
attach them to interfaces. A traffic policy contains a traffic class and one or more QoS features. The QoS
features in the traffic policy determine how the classified traffic is treated.
NBAR --Network-Based Application Recognition. A classification engine in Cisco IOS software that
recognizes a wide variety of applications, including web-based applications and client/server applications
that dynamically assign Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) or User Datagram Protocol (UDP) port
numbers. After the application is recognized, the network can invoke specific services for that application.
NBAR is a key part of the Cisco Content Networking architecture and works with QoS features to let you
use network bandwidth efficiently.
NetFlow --Cisco IOS security and accounting feature that maintains per-flow information.
NetFlow sampler --A set of properties that are defined in a NetFlow sampler map that has been applied to
at least one physical interface or subinterface.
NetFlow sampler map --The definition of a set of properties (such as the sampling rate) for NetFlow
sampling.
ToS --type of service. Second byte in the IP header that indicates the desired quality of service for a
specific datagram.

129
Example Configuring Random Sampled NetFlow to Reduce the Impact of NetFlow Data Export

130
Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support for
Accounting and Analysis
This document provides information about and instructions for configuring NetFlow Border Gateway
Protocol (BGP) next hop support. This feature lets you measure network traffic on a per BGP next hop
basis. NetFlow is a Cisco IOS application that provides statistics on packets flowing through the router. It
is emerging as a primary network accounting and security technology.

Prerequisites for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support, page 131
Restrictions for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support, page 132
Information About NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support, page 132
How to Configure NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support, page 133
Configuration Examples for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support, page 137
Feature Information for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support, page 138
Glossary, page 139

Prerequisites for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support

Before you can configure the NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support feature, you must:
Configure Cisco Express Forwarding (formerly known as CEF) switching or distributed Cisco Express
Forwarding (formerly known as dCEF) switching on the router and on the interfaces that you want to
enable NetFlow on (fast switching is not supported)
Configure NetFlow v9 (Version 9) data export (if only Version 5 is configured, then BGP next hop
data is visible in the caches, but is not exported)

131
NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support Benefits
Restrictions for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support
Configure BGP
Restrictions for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support

If your router is running Cisco IOS Release 12.2(14)S, 12.0(22)S, 12.2(15)T, or later releases the ip flow
ingress command is used to enable NetFlow on an interface.
Recursive Load Sharing

The NetFlow cache does not capture the BGP next hop when the route to that BGP next hop is recursively
load-shared via several IGP links. Instead, the NetFlow cache captures (as the BGP next hop) the effective
simple next hop from among a random selection of the load-shared routes to which the BGP route recurses.
Memory Impact
For BGP-controlled routes, the NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support feature adds 16 bytes to each NetFlow
flow record. This increases memory requirements by 16 bytes times the number of flow cache entries that
have BGP-controlled prefixes.
Performance Impact
Because the BGP next hop is fetched from the Cisco Express Forwarding path only once per flow, the
performance impact of the NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support feature is minimal.
IPv6 and BGP Next Hop

When connected at Layer 3 using an IPv6 address, BGP installs a link-local next hop and a null BGP next
hop in Cisco Express Forwarding. NetFlow uses the IPv6 predefined record "netflow ipv6 bgp-nexhop" or
a user-defined record containing the match field "routing next-hop address ipv6 bgp" and matches the link-
local next hop and a null BGP next hop with the switching software installed on the router.
Information About NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support

NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support Benefits, page 132
NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support and NetFlow Aggregation, page 133
NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support Benefits

Without the NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support feature, NetFlow exports only IP next hop information
(which provides information for only the next router). This feature adds BGP next hop information to the
data export.
The NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support feature lets you find out through which service provider the traffic is
going. This functionality is useful if you have arrangements with several other service providers for fault-
protected delivery of traffic. The feature lets you charge customers more per packet when traffic has a more

132
NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support and NetFlow Aggregation
How to Configure NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support
costly destination--you can pass on some of the cost associated with expensive transoceanic links or charge
more when traffic is sent to another ISP with which you have an expensive charge agreement.
This feature requires the NetFlow Version 9 export format for its data export.
NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support and NetFlow Aggregation

The Cisco IOS NetFlow Aggregation feature summarizes NetFlow export data on a router before the data is
exported to the NetFlow Collection Engine (formerly called the NetFlow FlowCollector). The NetFlow
BGP Next Hop Support feature provides the BGP next hop and its related aggregation scheme and provides
BGP next hop information within each NetFlow record.

Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Accounting, page 133
Verifying the Configuration, page 135
Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Accounting

Perform this task to configure NetFlow BGP next hop accounting for the main cache and aggregation
caches. You can enable the export of origin autonomous system (AS) information or peer AS information,
but not both.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-export version 9 [origin-as | peer-as] bgp-nexthop
4. ip flow-aggregation cache bgp-nexthop-tos
5. enabled
6. exit
9. exit
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable

133
Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support for Accounting and Analysis

Example:
Step 3 ip flow-export version 9 [origin-as | Enables the export of information in NetFlow cache entries.
peer-as] bgp-nexthop
version 9-- Specifies that the export packet uses the Version 9 format.
origin-as --Includes the origin autonomous system (AS) for the source
Example: and destination in the export statistics.
peer-as-- Includes the peer AS for the source and destination in the
Router(config)# ip flow-export export statistics.
version 9 origin-as bgp-nexthop
bgp-nexthop --Includes BGP next hop-related information in the
export statistics.
This command enables the export of origin AS information and BGP next
hop information from the NetFlow main cache.
reloads the route processor and line card Cisco Express
Forwarding tables. To avoid interruption of service to a live
network, apply this command during a change window, or include
it in the startup-config file to be executed during a router reboot.
Step 4 ip flow-aggregation cache bgp-nexthop- (Optional) Enables NetFlow aggregation cache schemes and enters
tos aggregation cache configuration mode.
bgp-nexthop-tos --Configures the BGP next hop type of service (ToS)
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-aggregation
cache bgp-nexthop-tos
Step 5 enabled Enables the aggregation cache.
Example:
Router(config-flow-cache)# enabled
Step 6 exit Exits aggregation cache configuration mode and returns to global
configuration mode.
Example: on an interface.
Router(config)# exit

134
Verifying the Configuration

Step 7 interface interface-type interface-number Specifies the interface on which you want to enable NetFlow and enters
interface configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config)# interface ethernet

0/0

ingress --Captures traffic that is being received by the interface.
Example: egress --Captures traffic that is being transmitted by the interface.
configuration mode.
Step 10 Repeat Steps 7 through 9 to enable (Optional) --

NetFlow on other interfaces.
If there are no BGP-specific flow records in the NetFlow cache, make sure that Cisco Express Forwarding
or distributed Cisco Express Forwarding switching is enabled and that the destination for NetFlow data
export is configured. Check the routing table for BGP routes also.
Verifying the Configuration

Perform this task to verify the configuration of NetFlow BGP next hop accounting.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. show ip cache flow aggregation bgp-nexthop-tos
4. exit
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Use this command to enable privileged EXEC mode. Enter your password if required. For example:

135
Example:
Router> enable
Router#
Use this command to verify successful configuration of NetFlow BGP next hop accounting. For example:
Example:
1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.000 .000 .000 1.00 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
MUL:M_Opaks M_Obytes BGP:BGP_NextHop
Et0/0/2 12.0.0.2 Et0/0/4 13.0.0.5 01 00 10 20
0000 /8 0 0800 /8 0 11.0.0.6 100 0.0
BGP:26.0.0.6
Et0/0/2 12.0.0.2 Et0/0/4 15.0.0.7 01 00 10 20
0000 /8 0 0800 /8 0 11.0.0.6 100 0.0
BGP:26.0.0.6
Et0/0/2 12.0.0.2 Et0/0/4 15.0.0.7 01 00 10 20
0000 /8 0 0000 /8 0 11.0.0.6 100 0.0
BGP:26.0.0.6
This command displays a detailed summary of NetFlow statistics (including additional NetFlow fields in the header
when NetFlow Version 9 data export is configured).
Step 3 show ip cache flow aggregation bgp-nexthop-tos
Use this command to verify the configuration of a BGP next hop ToS aggregation cache. For example:
Example:
Router# show ip cache flow aggregation bgp-nexthop-tos
Src If Src AS Dst If Dst AS TOS Flows Pkts B/Pk
Active
BGP NextHop
Et0/0/2 0 Et0/0/4 0 00 9 36 40
8.2
BGP:26.0.0.6
Step 4 exit

136
Example Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Accounting
Configuration Examples for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support
Return to user EXEC mode. For example:
Example:
Router# exit
Router>
Configuration Examples for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support

Example Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Accounting, page 137
Example Configuring NetFlow BGP Next Hop Accounting

The following example shows how to configure NetFlow BGP next hop accounting with origin AS and
BGP next hop statistics for the main cache:
configure terminal
!
ip flow-export version 9 origin-as bgp-nexthop
!
ip flow ingress
!
end
The following example shows how to configure a NetFlow BGP next hop ToS aggregation cache scheme:
configure terminal
ip flow-aggregation cache bgp-nexthop-tos

enabled
!
ip flow ingress
!
end
Related Documents


137
Feature Information for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support

Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
Standards
Standard Title
None --
MIBs
MIB MIBs Link

platforms, Cisco software releases, and feature sets,
URL:
RFCs
RFC Title
None --
Description Link
password.
Feature Information for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support

feature.

138
Glossary
Table 31 Feature Information for NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support
Feature Name Software Feature Configuration Information

NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support 12.0(26)S 12.2(18)S The NetFlow Border Gateway
12.2(27)SBC 12.3(1) 15.0(1)S Protocol (BGP) Next Hop
Support feature lets you measure
network traffic on a per BGP next
hop basis. Without the NetFlow
BGP Next Hop Support feature,
NetFlow exports only IP next hop
information (which provides only
the address of the next router).
This feature adds BGP next hop
information to the data export.
introduced or modified: ip flow-
export, show ip cache flow
aggregation, show ip cache
verbose flow.
Glossary
(EGP). BGP exchanges reachability information with other BGP systems. It is defined by RFC 1163.
BGP next hop --IP address of the next hop to be used to reach a specific destination.
fast switching --Cisco feature in which a route cache expedites packet switching through a router.
FIB --forwarding information base. A table containing the information needed to forward IP datagrams. At
a minimum, this table contains the interface identifier and next hop information for each reachable
destination network prefix. The FIB is distinct from the routing table (also called the routing information
base), which holds all routing information received from routing peers.
flow --(NetFlow) A set of packets with the same source IP address, destination IP address, source and
destination ports, and type of service, and the same interface on which flow is monitored. Ingress flows are

139
ToS --type of service byte. Second byte in the IP header that indicates the desired quality of service for a
particular datagram.

140
Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting
and Analysis
This module contains information about and instructions for configuring the MPLS Egress NetFlow
Accounting feature. The MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature allows you to capture IP flow
information for packets that are undergoing MPLS label disposition; that is, packets that arrive on a router
as MPLS packets and that are transmitted as IP packets.

Prerequisites for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting, page 141
Restrictions for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting, page 142
Information About Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting, page 142
How to Configure MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting, page 144
Configuration Examples for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting, page 147
Feature Information for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting, page 150
Glossary, page 151

Prerequisites for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow

Accounting
The network must support the following Cisco IOS features before you enable the MPLS Egress NetFlow
Accounting feature:
Multiprotocol label switching (MPLS)

141
MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Benefits Enhanced Network Monitoring and More Accurate Accounting Statistics
Restrictions for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting
Before you can configure the MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature, you must:
Configure Cisco Express Forwarding (CEF) switching or distributed CEF (dCEF) switching on the
router and on the interfaces that you want to enable MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting on (fast
switching is not supported)
Restrictions for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow

Accounting
The MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature is not supported in Cisco IOS Release 12.2(25)S and later.
Use the Egress NetFlow Accounting feature, which captures either IP or MPLS packets as they leave the
router.
Capturing Flows from Sites that Connect to the Same PE Router

The captured egress flows must originate from different sites of the same Virtual Private Network (VPN),
and they cannot connect to the same provider edge (PE) router. If both source and destination VPN sites are
connected to the PE router, the MPLS egress NetFlow accounting feature does not capture these egress
flows. You can capture these flows by enabling ingress NetFlow on the incoming customer edge (CE)-PE
link of the PE router. For example, in the figure below, traffic from site 3 (VPN1 destined for site 2) is
captured by an ingress NetFlow enabled on the PE2-CE3 link of PE2.
Memory Impact
Performance Impact
MPLS egress NetFlow accounting might adversely affect network performance because of the additional
accounting-related computations that occur in the traffic-forwarding path of the router.
Information About Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow

Accounting
MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Benefits Enhanced Network Monitoring and More Accurate
Accounting Statistics, page 142
MPLS VPN Flow Capture with MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting, page 143
MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Benefits Enhanced Network Monitoring

and More Accurate Accounting Statistics
Enhanced Network Monitoring for Complete Billing Solution
You can now capture flows on the egress and ingress router interfaces and obtain complete end-to-end
usage information on network traffic. The accounting server uses the collected data for various levels of

142
MPLS VPN Flow Capture with MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting
Information About Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting
aggregation for accounting reports and application programming interface (API) accounting information,
thus providing a complete billing solution.
More Accurate Accounting Statistics
NetFlow data statistics provided by the MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature can account for all
packets that are dropped in the core of the service provider network, thus providing more accurate traffic
statistics and patterns.
MPLS VPN Flow Capture with MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting

The MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature allows you to capture IP flow information for packets that
arrive on a router as MPLS packets and are transmitted as IP packets.
This feature allows you to capture the MPLS Virtual Private Network (VPN) IP flows that are traveling
through the service provider backbone from one site of a VPN to another site of the same VPN.
Formerly, you could capture flows only for IP packets on the ingress interface of a router. You could not
capture flows for MPLS encapsulated frames, which were switched through CEF from the input port.
Therefore, in an MPLS VPN environment, you captured flow information when packets were received
from a customer edge (CE) router and forwarded to the backbone. However, you could not capture flow
information when packets were transmitted to a CE router because those packets were received as MPLS
frames.
The MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature lets you capture the flows on the outgoing interfaces.
The figure below shows a sample MPLS VPN network topology that includes four VPN 1 sites and two
VPN 2 sites. If MPLS egress NetFlow is enabled on an outgoing PE interface, you can capture IP flow
information for packets that arrive at the PE as MPLS packets (from an MPLS VPN) and that are
transmitted as IP packets. For example,
To capture the flow of traffic going to site 2 of VPN 1 from any remote VPN 1 sites, you enable
MPLS egress NetFlow on link PE2-CE5 of provider edge router PE2.
To capture the flow of traffic going to site 1 of VPN 2 from any remote VPN 2 site, you enable MPLS
egress NetFlow on link PE3-CE4 of the provider edge router PE3.
The flows are stored in a global flow cache maintained by the router. You can use the show ip cache flow
command or other aggregation flow commands to view the egress flow data.
Figure 23 Sample MPLS VPN Network Topology with MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting

143
How to Configure MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting
The PE routers export the captured flows to the configured collector devices in the provider network.
Applications such as the Network Data Analyzer or the VPN Solution Center (VPN-SC) can gather
information from the captured flows and compute and display site-to-site VPN traffic statistics.
How to Configure MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting

Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting, page 144
Verifying MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Configuration, page 145

Perform the steps in this required task to configure MPLS egress NetFlow accounting.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
4. mpls netflow egress
5. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 interface interface-type interface-number (Required) Specifies the interface and enters interface configuration mode.
Example:

144
Verifying MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Configuration

Step 4 mpls netflow egress (Required) Enables the MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature on the
egress router interface.
Example:
Router(config-if)# mpls netflow egress
EXEC mode.
Example:
To display debug messages for MPLS egress NetFlow accounting, use the debug mpls netflowcommand.
Verifying MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Configuration

Perform the steps in this optional task to verify that the MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting configuration is
as you expect.
SUMMARY STEPS
2. show mpls forwarding-table detail
3. show mpls interfaces internal
DETAILED STEPS

Use this command to verify that the MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting configuration is as you expect. For example:
Example:

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.000 .000 .000 1.00 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000

145
Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting and Analysis

ICMP 1 0.0 5 100 0.0 0.0 15.7
Total : 1 0.0 5 100 0.0 0.0 15.7
Et1/1 209.165.200.225 Et1/4 209.165.201.2 01 0000 0800 5
Step 2 show mpls forwarding-table detail
Use this command to verify the configuration of MPLS egress NetFlow accounting. Check that the quick flag is set
for prefixes, which indicates capture by MPLS egress NetFlow accounting. For example:
Example:
Router# show mpls forwarding-table detail

Local Outgoing Prefix Bytes tag Outgoing Next Hop
tag tag or VC or Tunnel Id switched interface
16 Aggregate 34.0.0.0/8[V] 0
MAC/Encaps=0/0, MTU=0, Tag Stack{}
VPN route: vpn1
Feature Quick flag set
Note As shown above, the quick flag is set for the first two prefixes; therefore, traffic destined for those prefixes is
captured by MPLS egress NetFlow accounting.
Example:
Per-packet load-sharing, slots: 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

17 Untagged 2.0.0.0/8[V] 0 Et0/0/2 34.0.0.1
VPN route: vpn1
18 Untagged 42.42.42.42/32[V] 4185 Et0/0/2 34.0.0.1
VPN route: vpn1
19 2/33 41.41.41.41/32 0 AT1/0/0.1 point2point
MAC/Encaps=4/8, MTU=4470, Tag Stack{2/33(vcd=2)}
00028847 00002000
No output feature configured
Note As shown above, the feature is not configured because MPLS egress NetFlow accounting is not enabled on the
outgoing interface for this prefix.
Example:

20 Aggregate 39.39.39.39/32[V] 0
Local Outgoing Prefix Bytes tag Outgoing Next Hop
tag tag or VC or Tunnel Id switched interface
VPN route: vpn1
No output feature configured
Router#
Step 3 show mpls interfaces internal
Use this command to show whether or not MPLS egress NetFlow accounting is enabled on the interface. For example:

146
Enabling MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Example
Configuration Examples for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting
Example:
Router# show mpls interfaces internal

Interface Ethernet0/0/1:
IP tagging enabled (tdp)
TSP Tunnel tagging not enabled
Tag Frame Relay Transport tagging not enabled
Tagging operational
IP to Tag Fast Feature Switching Vector
Tag Switching Turbo Feature Vector
MTU = 1500, status=0x100043, appcount=1
Output_feature_state=0x0
Note The "Output_feature_state=0x0" entry indicates that MPLS egress NetFlow accounting is disabled on interface
Ethernet 0/0/1.
Example:
Tag VPI = 1, Control VC = 0/32

Interface Ethernet0/0/2:
TSP Tunnel tagging not enabled
Tag Frame Relay Transport tagging not enabled
Tagging operational
IP to Tag Fast Feature Switching Vector
Tag Switching Turbo Feature Vector
MTU = 1500, status=0x100043, appcount=1
Output_feature_state=0x1
Note The "Output_feature_state=0x1" entry indicates that MPLS egress NetFlow accounting is enabled on interface
Ethernet 0/0/2.
Example:
Tag VPI = 1, Control VC = 0/32

Interface ATM1/0/0.1:
Configuration Examples for Configuring MPLS Egress

NetFlow Accounting
Enabling MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Example, page 147
Enabling MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting Example

This section contains a sample configuration for the MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting feature.

147
The show ip vrfcommand lists the Virtual Private Network (VPN) routing and forwarding instances
(VRFs) configured in the router:
Router# show ip vrf

Name Default RD Interfaces
vpn1 100:1 Ethernet1/4
Loopback1
vpn3 300:1 Ethernet1/2
Loopback2
In the following example, MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting is enabled on interface Ethernet 1/4:
configure terminal
!
ip address 172.17.24.2 255.255.255.0
mpls netflow egress
exit
Enter the show running-configcommand to view the current configuration in the router:
Router# show running-config

Building configuration...
Current configuration:
!
version 12.0
service timestamps debug uptime
service timestamps log uptime
no service password-encryption
ip cef
no ip domain-lookup
!
This section of the output shows the VRF being defined and shows that the MPLS Egress NetFlow
Accounting feature is enabled:
ip vrf vpn1
rd 100:1
route-target export 100:1
route-target import 100:1
!
interface Loopback0
ip address 10.41.41.41 255.255.255.255
no ip directed-broadcast
no ip mroute-cache
!
ip vrf forwarding vpn1
ip address 172.17.24.2 255.255.255.0
no ip directed-broadcast
mpls netflow egress
!
Related Documents


148

NetFlow
With SCTP
Standards
Standard Title

149
Feature Information for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting
MIBs
MIB MIBs Link

RFCs
RFC Title
RFC 1163 Border Gateway Protocol (BGP )
RFC 1340 Assigned Numbers
RFC 1918 Address Allocation For Private Internets
RFC 2547 BGP/MPLS VPNs
Description Link
The Cisco Support website provides extensive http://www.cisco.com/cisco/web/support/
online resources, including documentation and tools index.html
for troubleshooting and resolving technical issues
with Cisco products and technologies.
To receive security and technical information about
your products, you can subscribe to various
services, such as the Product Alert Tool (accessed
from Field Notices), the Cisco Technical Services
Newsletter, and Really Simple Syndication (RSS)
Feeds.
Access to most tools on the Cisco Support website
requires a Cisco.com user ID and password.
Feature Information for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow

Accounting
feature.

150
Glossary
Table 32 Feature Information for Configuring MPLS Egress NetFlow Accounting

MPLS Egress NetFlow 12.1(5)T 12.0(20)S The MPLS Egress NetFlow
Accounting Accounting feature allows you to
capture IP flow information for
packets that are undergoing
MPLS label disposition; that is,
packets that arrive on a router as
MPLS packets and that are
transmitted as IP packets.
feature: debug mpls netflow,
mpls netflow egress, show mpls
forwarding-table, and show
mpls interface.
Glossary
RFC 1163.
BGP/MPLS/VPN --A Virtual Private Network (VPN) solution that uses Multiprotocol Label Switching
(MPLS) and Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) to allow multiple remote customer sites to be connected over
an IP backbone. Refer to RFC 2547 for details.
CE router --A customer edge router. A router that is part of a customer network and interfaces to a
provider edge (PE) router.
customer network --A network that is under the control of an end customer. A customer network can use
private addresses as defined in RFC 1918. Customer networks are logically isolated from each other and
from the provider network. A customer network is also known as a C network.
egress PE --The provider edge router through which traffic moves from the backbone to the destination
Virtual Private Network (VPN) site.
flow --A set of packets with the same source IP address, destination IP address, source/destination ports,
and type-of-service, and the same interface on which flow is monitored. Ingress flows are associated with
the input interface, and egress flows are associated with the output interface.
ingress PE --The provider edge router through which traffic enters the backbone (provider network) from a
Virtual Private Network (VPN) site.
label --A short, fixed length identifier that tells switching nodes how the data (packets or cells) should be
forwarded.
along normally routed paths (sometimes called MPLS hop-by-hop forwarding).
PE route r--A provider edge router. A router at the edge of a provider network that interfaces to customer
edge (CE) routers.

151
provider network --A backbone network that is under the control of a service provider and provides
transport among customer sites. A provider network is also known as the P network.
VPN --Virtual Private Network. The result of a router configuration that enables IP traffic to use tunneling
to travel securely over a public TCP/IP network.
VRF --Virtual Private Network (VPN) routing/forwarding instance. The VRF is a key element in the
MPLS VPN technology. VRFs exist on PEs only. A VRF is populated with VPN routes and allows one PE
to have multiple routing tables. One VRF is required per VPN on each PE in the VPN.

152
Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow
NetFlow is a Cisco IOS application that provides statistics on packets flowing through the router. This
module contains information about and instructions for configuring Multiprotocol Label Switching
(MPLS)-aware NetFlow. MPLS-aware NetFlow is an extension of the NetFlow accounting feature that
provides highly granular traffic statistics for Cisco routers.

Prerequisites for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow, page 153
Restrictions for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow, page 155
Information About Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow, page 156
How to Configure MPLS-aware NetFlow, page 161
Configuration Examples for MPLS-aware NetFlow, page 168
Feature Information for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow, page 173
Glossary, page 173

Prerequisites for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow

Configure NetFlow on the label switch router (LSR).
Configure MPLS on the LSR.
Configure Cisco Express Forwarding or distributed CEF enabled on the LSR and the interfaces that
you want to enable NetFlow on.
If you are exporting data to a Cisco NetFlow collector, the following requirements apply:
NetFlow Version 9 export format configured on the LSR
NetFlow collector and analyzer capable of using MPLS-aware NetFlow export packets in Version 9
format

153
Prerequisites for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow
The table below describes the Cisco 12000 series Internet router line card support for Cisco IOS 12.0 S
releases of MPLS-aware NetFlow.
Table 33 Cisco 12000 Series Line Card Support for MPLS-aware NetFlow in Cisco IOS 12.0S Releases
Type Line Card

Ethernet 1-Port GE3
8-Port FE
3-Port GE
1-Port 10-GE Modular GE
Packet over SONET (POS) 4-Port OC-3 POS4 1-Port OC-12 POS
1-Port OC-48 POS
4-Port OC-12 POS
4-Port OC-12 POS ISE
4-Port OC-3 POS ISE
8-Port OC-3 POS ISE
1-Port OC-192 POS ES (Edge Release)
4-Port OC-48 POS ES (Edge Release)
Channelized interfaces 1-Port CHOC-12 (DS3)

1-Port CHOC-12 (OC-3)
6-Port Ch T3 (DS1)
2-Port CHOC-3
1-Port CHOC-48 ISE
4-Port CHOC-12 ISE
Electrical interface 6-Port DS3

12-Port DS3
6-Port E3
12-Port E3
3 This Cisco 12000 series Internet router line card does not support MPLS-aware NetFlow.
4 This Cisco 12000 series Internet router line card supports MPLS-aware NetFlow enabled in either full or sampled mode. Line cards not marked with a
footnote character support MPLS-aware NetFlow in sampled mode only. In general, Cisco 12000 line cards support MPLS-aware NetFlow in the same
mode as they support NetFlow.

154
Restrictions for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow
Type Line Card

Dynamic packet transport 1-Port OC-12 DPT
1-Port OC-48 DPT
4-Port OC-48 DPT
1-Port OC-192 DPT
ATM 4-Port OC-3 ATM

1-Port OC-12 ATM
8-Port OC-3 STM-1 ATM
Restrictions for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow

If your router is running Cisco IOS Release 12.2(14)S, 12.0(22)S, 12.2(15)T, or later releases, the ip flow
ingress command is used to enable NetFlow on an interface.
MPLS-aware NetFlow
The following restrictions apply to the MPLS-aware NetFlow feature:
Three MPLS labels can only be captured and exported.
MPLS-aware NetFlow reports the following fields in MPLS flows as 0: IP next-hop, source and
destination Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) autonomous system numbers, and source and destination
prefix masks.
For MPLS packets that contain non-IP packets under the MPLS label stack, MPLS-aware NetFlow
reports the following flow fields as 0: source and destination IP addresses, protocol, ToS, ports, and
TCP flags.
The IP addresses associated with the top label for traffic engineering (TE) tunnel midpoints and Any
Transport over MPLS (AToM) are reported as 0.0.0.0.
The top label type and IP address are obtained at the moment of flow export. Either can be incorrect if
the top label was deleted or reassigned after the creation of the flow in the NetFlow cache.
The following points apply for the Cisco 12000 1-Port 10-GE, Modular GE, 1-Port OC-192 POS ES
(Edge Release), and 4-Port OC-48 POS ES (Edge Release) line cards:
MPLS-aware NetFlow samples both IP and MPLS packets, but reports only MPLS packets that
have one label per packet, ignoring all other packets (that is, IP and MPLS packets with more than
one label).
MPLS-aware NetFlow does not report application (TCP/UDP) port numbers.
MPLS-aware NetFlow reports experimental bits in MPLS labels as 0.
The Cisco 12000 1-Port OC-48 POS, 4-Port OC-12 POS, 16-Port OC-3 POS, 3-Port GE, and 1-Port
OC-48 DPT line cards support MPLS-aware NetFlow in sampled mode in all microcode bundles that
include IP-sampled NetFlow.
Cisco 7600 series routers do not support the MPLS-aware NetFlow feature.

155
MPLS-aware NetFlow Overview
Information About Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow

MPLS-aware NetFlow Overview, page 156
MPLS Label Stack, page 156
MPLS-aware NetFlow Capture of MPLS Labels, page 158
MPLS-aware NetFlow Display of MPLS Labels, page 159
Information Captured and Exported by MPLS-aware NetFlow, page 159
Full and Sampled MPLS-aware NetFlow Support, page 160
MPLS-aware NetFlow Overview

MPLS-aware NetFlow is an extension of the NetFlow accounting feature that provides highly granular
traffic statistics for Cisco routers. MPLS-aware NetFlow collects statistics on a per-flow basis just as
NetFlow does.
A flow is a unidirectional set of packets (IP or MPLS) that arrive at the router on the same subinterface,
have the same source and destination IP addresses, the same Layer 4 protocol, the same TCP/UDP source
and destination ports, and the same type of service byte in the IP header.
An MPLS flow contains up to three of the same incoming MPLS labels of interest with experimental bits
and end-of-stack bits in the same positions in the packet label stack. MPLS-aware NetFlow captures MPLS
traffic that contains both IP and non-IP packets. It reports non-IP packets, but sets the IP NetFlow fields to
0. It can also be configured to capture and report IP packets, setting to 0 the IP NetFlow fields. MPLS-
aware NetFlow uses the NetFlow Version 9 export format. MPLS-aware NetFlow exports up to three labels
of interest from the incoming label stack, the IP address associated with the top label, and traditional
NetFlow data.
MPLS-aware NetFlow statistics can be used for detailed MPLS traffic studies and analysis that can provide
information for a variety of purposes such as MPLS network management, network planning, and
enterprise accounting.
A network administrator can turn on MPLS-aware NetFlow inside an MPLS cloud on a subset of provider
backbone (P) routers. These routers can export MPLS-aware NetFlow data to an external NetFlow
collection device for further processing and analysis or you can display NetFlow cache data on a router
terminal.
MPLS Label Stack

As packets move through an MPLS network, LSRs can add labels to the MPLS label stack. LSRs in an
MPLS cloud can add up to six labels to the MPLS label stack. An LSR adds the MPLS labels to the top of
the IP packet. The figure below shows an example of an incoming MPLS label stack that LSRs added to an
IP packet as it traversed an MPLS cloud.
Figure 24 Example of an MPLS Label Stack Added to an IP Packet in an MPLS Cloud

156
In the example of an MPLS label stack in the figure above:

The 33 represents the top label of this packet.
This label was the last label added to the MPLS label stack and the label that MPLS-aware NetFlow
captures if you indicate the label of interest as 1.
The 42 represents the second label in the MPLS stack.
MPLS-aware NetFlow captures this label if you indicate 2 (second from the top) as a label of interest.
The 16 represents the third label in the MPLS label stack.
MPLS-aware NetFlow captures this label if you indicate 3 (third from the top) as a label of interest.
Lb4-Lb6 represents the fourth to sixth labels in the MPLS stack. LSRs in an MPLS cloud add up to six
labels to the MPLS label stack.
MPLS-aware NetFlow captures these labels if you indicate 4, 5, or 6 as labels of interest.
The B represents miscellaneous bits. These include the following:
Exp--Three bits reserved for experimental use
S--End-of-stack bits, set to 1 for the last entry in the stack and to 0 for every other entry
Time to Live (TTL)--Eight bits used to encode a hop count (or time to live) value
The figure below shows a sample Carrier Supporting Carrier (CSC) topology and the incoming MPLS label
stack on multiple LSRs as the packet travels through the network. The figure shows what the stack might
look like at a provider core LSR.
Figure 25 Provider and Customer Networks and MPLS Label Imposition
In the example in the figure above, a hierarchical VPN is set up between two customer edge (CE) routers.
Traffic flows from the CE router to a provider edge (PE) router, possibly one belonging to an Internet
service provider (ISP). Here, a VPN label (16) is imposed on the inbound IP packet.

157
MPLS-aware NetFlow Capture of MPLS Labels
The ISP network eventually connects to an Internet backbone provider where a CSC label (42) is
imposed on the label stack.
As packets traverse the backbone network, a Label Distribution Protocol (LDP) label (33) is imposed
on the label stack.
At the inbound interface shown in the figure above, MPLS-aware NetFlow captures the MPLS label stack
and reports that the top label (33) is an LDP label, the second label (42) is a CSC label, and the third label
(16) is a VPN label.
With NetFlow and MPLS-aware NetFlow enabled on the P router, you can determine the label type for the
specified labels, and the IP address associated with the top label on the incoming interface (see the MPLS-
aware NetFlow Capture of MPLS Labels, page 158). Thus, you can track specific types of MPLS traffic,
such as TE, LDP, or VPNs.
MPLS-aware NetFlow Capture of MPLS Labels

When you configure the MPLS-aware NetFlow feature, you select the MPLS label positions in the
incoming label stack that you are interested in monitoring. You can capture up to three labels from
positions 1 to 6 in the MPLS label stack. Label positions are counted from the top of the stack. For
example, the position of the top label is 1, the position of the next label is 2, and so on. You enter the stack
location value as an argument to the following command:
ip flow-cache mpls label-positions
[label-position-1 [label-position-2 [label-position-3]]]
The label-position-n argument represents the position of the label on the incoming label stack. For
example, the ip flow-cache mpls label-positions 1 3 4 command configures MPLS-aware NetFlow to
capture and export the first (top), third, and fourth labels. If you enter this command and the label stack
consists of two MPLS labels, MPLS-aware NetFlow captures only the first (top) label. If some of the labels
you requested are not available, they are not captured or reported.
In addition to capturing MPLS labels from the label stack, MPLS-aware NetFlow records the following
MPLS label information:
Type of top label--The type can be any of the following: unknown, TE tunnel midpoint, AToM, VPN,
BGP, or LDP.
The IP address associated with the top label--The route prefix to which the label maps.
Note The IP address for any TE tunnel midpoint or AToM top label is reported as 0.0.0.0.
MPLS-aware NetFlow is enabled globally on the router. However, NetFlow is enabled per interface and
must be enabled in either full or sampled mode on the interfaces where you choose to capture and export
MPLS and IP NetFlow data.
Note See the table below for information about Cisco 12000 series Internet router line card support for NetFlow
(full and sampled modes).

158
MPLS-aware NetFlow Display of MPLS Labels
MPLS-aware NetFlow Display of MPLS Labels

The MPLS-aware NetFlow feature allows the display of a snapshot of the NetFlow cache, including MPLS
flows, on a terminal through the use of the show ip cache verbose flow command. For example, the
following output from a provider core router (P router) shows position, value, experimental bits, and end-
of-stack bit for each MPLS label of interest. It also shows the type of the top label and the IP address
associated with the top label.

PO3/0 10.1.1.1 PO5/1 10.2.1.1 01 00 10 9
0100 /0 0 0200 /0 0 0.0.0.0 100 0.0
Pos:Lbl-Exp-S 1:12305-6-0 (LDP/10.10.10.10) 2:12312-6-1
In this example from a P router:

The value of the top label is 12305.
The experimental bits value is 6 and the end-of-stack bit is 0.
The label type is LDP and the IP address associated with the label is 10.10.10.10.
The value of the second label is 12312, the experimental bits value is 6, and the end-of-stack bit is 1.
To fully understand and use the information gathered on the P router, you need information from the Label
Forwarding Information Base (LFIB) on the PE router.
Note The MPLS application owner for a label is not reported by MPLS-aware NetFlow for any MPLS label
except for the top label. IP information, the label number, and the MPLS application are reported for the
top label. Only IP information and the label number are reported for labels other than the top label.
Therefore, you need to understand your network if you are interested in identifying the MPLS application
owner for labels other than the top MPLS label.
Using MPLS-aware NetFlow, you can monitor various labels in the MPLS label stack. You can also export
this information to a NetFlow collector for further processing with a data analyzer and look at MPLS traffic
patterns in your network.
Information Captured and Exported by MPLS-aware NetFlow

MPLS-aware NetFlow captures and reports on other information in addition to MPLS labels. It provides
per-flow statistics for both incoming IP and MPLS traffic.
For MPLS traffic, MPLS-aware NetFlow captures and reports up to three labels of interest and the
label type and associated IP address of the top label, along with a subset of NetFlow data.
For IP traffic, MPLS-aware NetFlow provides the regular NetFlow data.
MPLS-aware NetFlow uses the Version 9 format to export both IP and MPLS NetFlow data.
MPLS-aware NetFlow provides the following traditional NetFlow per-flow statistics:
Number of packets
Number of bytes, counting either MPLS payload size only or MPLS payload size plus MPLS label
stack size
Time stamp of the first packet
Time stamp of the last packet

159
Full and Sampled MPLS-aware NetFlow Support
In addition to these statistics, MPLS-aware NetFlow exports values for the following fields for each flow,
using the Version 9 NetFlow export format:
Regular NetFlow fields:
Source IP address
Transport layer protocol
Destination application port number
IP ToS
TCP flags
Input interface
Output interface
Note With the exception of the input interface and output interface fields, these regular NetFlow fields are not
included in a flow if the no-ip-fields keyword is specified in the ip flow-cache mpls label-positions
command.
Additional fields:
Up to three incoming MPLS labels with experimental bits and an end-of-stack bit
Positions of the MPLS labels in the label stack
Type of the top label
An address prefix associated with the top label specific to the label type: TE--This is always set to
"0.0.0.0" because tunnel label addresses are not supported. LDP--The address prefix is the IP
address of the next-hop. VPN--If the VRFs do not have overlapping IP addresses, the address
prefix is the destination prefix. If the VRFs have overlapping IP addresses the destination prefix
given may be ambiguous.
Note Unlike NetFlow, MPLS-aware NetFlow reports a 0 value for IP next-hop, source, and destination BGP
autonomous system numbers, or source and destination prefix masks for MPLS packets.
Note If you are exporting MPLS data to a NetFlow collector or a data analyzer, the collector must support the
NetFlow Version 9 flow export format, and you must configure NetFlow export in Version 9 format on the
router.
Full and Sampled MPLS-aware NetFlow Support

The table below shows full and sampled MPLS-aware NetFlow support. Information in the table is based
on the Cisco IOS release and includes the commands to implement the functionality on a supported
platform.

160
Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow on a Router
How to Configure MPLS-aware NetFlow
Table 34 Full and Sampled MPLS-aware NetFlow Support
Cisco IOS Release Full or Sampled NetFlow Cisco 12000 Series Cisco 7500/7200 Series
Commands to Implement Commands to
Implement5
12.0(24)S Sampled ip route-cache flow --
sampled
Full -- --
12.0(26)S Sampled ip route-cache flow flow-sampler-map

sampled sampler-map-name
mode random one-of
packet-interval
interface type number
flow-sampler sampler-
map-name
Full -- ip route-cache flow

Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow on a Router, page 161
Configuring Sampling for MPLS-aware NetFlow, page 164
Verifying the NetFlow Sampler Configuration, page 165
Displaying MPLS-aware NetFlow Information on a Router, page 166
Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow on a Router

Perform the following task to configure MPLS-aware NetFlow on a router.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. interface type /number
4. ip flow {ingress}
5. exit
6. Repeat Steps 3 through 5 for each interface you want to configure NetFlow on.
7. ip flow-export version 9 [origin-as | peer-as][bgp-nexthop]
8. ip flow-cache mpls label-positions [label-position-1 [label-position-2 [label-position-3]]] [no-ip-
fields] [mpls-length]
9. exit
5 NetFlow sampling on the Cisco 7500 and 7200 platforms is performed by a feature called Random Sampled NetFlow.

161
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 interface type /number Specifies the interface and enters interface configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config)# interface pos 3/0
Step 4 ip flow {ingress} Enables NetFlow on the interface.

ingress --captures traffic that is being received by the interface
Example:
configuration mode.
Note You only need to use this command if you want to enable NetFlow on
Example: another interface.
Step 6 Repeat Steps 3 through 5 for each This step is optional.

interface you want to configure NetFlow
on.

162

Step 7 ip flow-export version 9 [origin-as | (Optional) Enables the export of information in NetFlow cache entries.
peer-as][bgp-nexthop]
The version 9 keyword specifies that the export packet uses the Version
9 format.
Example: The origin-as keyword specifies that export statistics include the origin
autonomous system (AS) for the source and destination.
Router(config)# ip flow-export The peer-as keyword specifies that export statistics include the peer AS
version 9 origin-as
for the source and destination.
Caution Entering this command on a Cisco 12000 series Internet router
reloads the Route Processor and line card Cisco Express Forwarding
tables. To avoid interruption of service to a live network, apply this
command during a change window, or include it in the startup-config
file to be executed during a router reboot.
Step 8 ip flow-cache mpls label-positions Enables MPLS-aware NetFlow.

[label-position-1 [label-position-2 [label-
The label-position-n argument identifies the position of an MPLS label of
position-3]]] [no-ip-fields] [mpls-length]
interest in the incoming label stack. Label positions are counted from the
top of the stack, starting with 1.
Example: The no-ip-fields keyword controls the capture and reporting of MPLS
flow fields. If the no-ip-fields keyword is specified, the following IP-
Router(config)# ip flow-cache mpls related flow fields are not included:
label-positions 1 2 3
Source IP address
Transport layer protocol
Destination application port number
IP type of service (ToS)
TCP flag (the result of a bitwise OR of TCP)
If the no-ip-fields keyword is not specified, the IP-related fields are captured
and reported.
The mpls-length keyword controls the reporting of packet length. If the
mpls-length keyword is specified, the reported length represents the sum
of the MPLS packet payload length and the MPLS label stack length.
If the mpls-length keyword is not specified, only the length of the MPLS
packet payload is reported.

163
Configuring Sampling for MPLS-aware NetFlow

Step 9 exit Exits the current configuration mode and returns to privileged EXEC mode.
Example:
Configuring Sampling for MPLS-aware NetFlow

Perform the following task to configure sampling for MPLS-aware NetFlow.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
5. exit
6. interface type / number
7. flow-sampler sampler-map-name
8. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 flow-sampler-map sampler-map-name Defines a named object representing a NetFlow sampler and enters
sampler map configuration mode.
Example:
sampler.
Router(config)# flow-sampler-map mysampler

164
Verifying the NetFlow Sampler Configuration

Step 4 mode random one-out-of packet-interval Specifies the sampling mode for the NetFlow sampler.
The random keyword specifies the random sampling mode.
Example: The one-out-of packet-interval keyword argument combination
defines the interval selected for random sampling. The packet
Router(config-sampler-map)# mode random interval is from 1 to 65535.
one-out-of 100
Step 5 exit Exits sampler map configuration mode and returns to global
configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config-sampler-map)# exit
Step 6 interface type / number Specifies the interface that you want to enable NetFlow on and
Example:
Step 7 flow-sampler sampler-map-name Enables sampled NetFlow accounting on the interface.

sampler.
Example:
Router(config-if)# flow-sampler mysampler
mode.
Example:
Use the show-sampler sampler-map-name command to verify the configuration of NetFlow sampling,
including the NetFlow sampling mode, sampling mode parameters, and number of packets sampled by the
NetFlow sampler.
For more information about NetFlow export sampling, see the Using NetFlow Filtering or Sampling to
Select the Network Traffic to Track module.
Verifying the NetFlow Sampler Configuration

Perform the following task to verify the NetFlow sampler configuration on your router:

165
Displaying MPLS-aware NetFlow Information on a Router
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show flow-sampler [sampler-map-name]
DETAILED STEPS
show flow-sampler [sampler-map-name]

Use this command to verify the following information about a specific or all NetFlow samplers on the router:
sampling mode, sampling parameters (such as packet sampling interval), and number of packets selected by the
sampler for NetFlow processing. For example, the following command verifies the configuration for a specific
NetFlow sampler:
Example:
Router# show flow-sampler mysampler

Sampler : mysampler, id : 1, packets matched : 10, mode : random sampling mode
The following command verifies the configuration for all NetFlow samplers on the router:
Example:

Sampler : mysampler, id : 1, packets matched : 10, mode : random sampling mode
Displaying MPLS-aware NetFlow Information on a Router

Perform this task to display a snapshot of the MPLS-aware NetFlow cache on a router.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
2.
attach slot-number
if-con slot-number
5. exit (Cisco 12000 series routers only)
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable

166
Example:
Router> enable
Step 2
attach slot-number
if-con slot-number
Example:
Router# attach 3
Example:
Router# if-con 3
Use the attach command to access the Cisco IOS software on the line card of a Cisco 12000 series Internet router.
Use the if-con command to access the Cisco IOS software on the line card of a Cisco 7500 series router.
Use this command to display IP and MPLS flow records in the NetFlow cache on a Cisco 12000 series Internet router
or Cisco 7500 series router. For example:
Example:

PO3/0 10.1.1.1 PO5/1 10.2.1.1 01 00 10 9
0100 /0 0 0200 /0 0 0.0.0.0 100 0.0
Pos:Lbl-Exp-S 1:12305-6-0 (LDP/10.10.10.10) 2:12312-6-1
In this example, the value of the top label is 12305, the experimental bits value is 6, and the end-of-stack bit is 0. The
label is LDP and it has an associated IP address of 10.10.10.10. The value of the next from the top label is 12312, the
experimental bits value is 6, and the end-of-stack bit is 1. The 1 indicates that this is the last MPLS label in the stack.
Use this command to display IP and MPLS flow records in the NetFlow cache on a Cisco 7200 series router. For
example:
Example:

...
PO3/0 10.1.1.1 PO5/1 10.2.1.1 01 00 10 9
0100 /0 0 0200 /0 0 0.0.0.0 100 0.0
Pos:Lbl-Exp-S 1:12305-6-0 (LDP/10.10.10.10) 2:12312-6-1
In this example, the value of the top label is 12305, the experimental bits value is 6, and the end-of-stack bit is 0. The
label is LDP and has an associated IP address of 10.10.10.10. The value of the next from the top label is 12312, the
experimental bits value is 6, and the end-of-stack bit is 1. The 1 indicates that this is the last MPLS label in the stack.

167
Configuration Examples for MPLS-aware NetFlow
Use this command to display a summary of the IP and MPLS flow records in the NetFlow cache on a Cisco 12000
series Internet router or Cisco 7500 series router. For example, the following output of the show ip cache flow
command shows the IP portion of the MPLS flow record in the NetFlow cache:
Example:

...
PO3/0 10.1.1.1 PO5/1 10.2.1.1 01 0100 0200 9
...
Use this command to display a summary of the IP and MPLS flow records in the NetFlow cache on a Cisco 7200
series router. For example:
Example:

...
PO3/0 10.1.1.1 PO5/1 10.2.1.1 01 0100 0200 9
...
Step 5 exit (Cisco 12000 series routers only)
or
if-quit (Cisco 7500 series routers only)
Use the exit command to exit from the line card to privileged EXEC mode of a Cisco 12000 series Internet router. For
example:
Example:
Router# exit
Use the if-quit command to exit from the line card to privileged EXEC mode of a Cisco 7500 series router. For
example:
Example:
Router# if-quit

Example Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow on a Router, page 169
Example Configuring Sampling for MPLS-aware NetFlow, page 170

168
Example Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow on a Router
Example Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow on a Router

The following example shows MPLS-aware NetFlow configured globally and NetFlow enabled on an
interface on a Cisco 12000 series P router with Cisco IOS Release 12.0(24)S and later releases:
configure terminal
!
interface pos 3/0
ip address 10.10.10.2 255.255.255.0
ip route-cache flow sampled
exit
!
ip flow-export version 9 origin-as
ip flow-sampling-mode packet-interval 101
ip flow-cache mpls label-positions 1 2 3
exit
The following examples show MPLS-aware NetFlow configured globally and NetFlow enabled on an
interface on a Cisco 7200 or Cisco 7500 series P router with Cisco IOS 12.0S releases:
configure terminal
!
interface pos 3/0
ip address 10.10.10.2 255.255.255.0
ip route-cache flow sampled
exit
!
exit
The following examples show MPLS-aware NetFlow configured globally and NetFlow enabled on an
interface on a router with a Cisco IOS Release 12.2(14)S, 12.2(15)T, or 12.0(22)S or later releases:
configure terminal
!
interface pos 3/0
ip address 10.10.10.2 255.255.255.0
ip flow ingress
exit
!
exit
To export MPLS-aware NetFlow data from the router, you need to configure the NetFlow Version 9 export
format. This example shows the NetFlow Version 9 export format configuration options for MPLS-aware
NetFlow and IP NetFlow data export along with an explanation of what each command configures.
Table 35 NetFlow Version 9 Format Configuration Options
Enters global configuration mode and requests

configure terminal
ip flow-export version 9 origin-as Version 9 flow export, and reports origin-as for IP
packets.
Specifies the template option sampling

ip flow-export template options sampling
configuration.

169
Example Configuring Sampling for MPLS-aware NetFlow
Defining the NetFlow Sampler
Reports the number of export packets sent and the

ip flow-export template options export-
stats number of flows exported.
Exports template options every 5 minutes.

ip flow-export template options timeout 5
Resends templates to the collector every 5 minutes.

ip flow-export template timeout 5
Specifies the export destination and UDP port.

ip flow-export destination 10.21.32.25
9996
Specifies the export source.

ip flow-export source Loopback0
Configures the sampling mode packet interval.

Configures the MPLS-aware NetFlow feature to

report the top three labels.
Enables full or sampled IP and MPLS-aware

interface pos 3/0
ip route-cache flow [sampled] NetFlow on interface POS 3/0 and returns to
end privileged EXEC mode.
Note The combination of sampled IP and MPLS-
aware NetFlow is supported on the Cisco
12000 series Internet router only.

The following examples show how to define a NetFlow sampler that randomly selects 1 out of 100 packets
for NetFlow processing, and how to apply this sampler to an interface on a Cisco 7500 or Cisco 7200 series
router.
Defining the NetFlow Sampler, page 170
Applying the NetFlow Sampler to an Interface, page 171
Defining the NetFlow Sampler

The following example shows how to define a NetFlow sampler called mysampler that randomly selects 1
out of 100 packets for NetFlow processing:
configure terminal
!
flow-sampler-map mysampler
end
exit

170
Applying the NetFlow Sampler to an Interface
Applying the NetFlow Sampler to an Interface

The following example shows how to apply the NetFlow sampler named mysampler to an interface:
configure terminal
!
interface FastEthernet 2/0
flow-sampler mysampler
end
exit
Related Documents

Tasks for detecting and analyzing network threats Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats with
Tasks for configuring NetFlow Reliable Export NetFlow Reliable Export with SCTP
With SCTP
Tasks for configuring the SNMP NetFlow MIB Configuring SNMP and Using the NetFlow MIB to

171

Tasks for configuring the NetFlow MIB and Top Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Using Cisco IOS
Standards
Standard Title
MIBs
MIB MIBs Link

platforms, Cisco software releases, and feature sets,
URL:
RFCs
RFC Title
Description Link
password.

172
Feature Information for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow
Feature Information for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow

feature.
Table 36 Feature Information for Configuring MPLS-aware NetFlow

MPLS-aware NetFlow 12.0(24)S, 12.3(8)T MPLS-aware NetFlow is an
extension of the NetFlow
accounting feature that provides
highly granular traffic statistics
for Cisco routers. MPLS-aware
NetFlow collects statistics on a
per-flow basis just as NetFlow
does. MPLS-aware NetFlow uses
the NetFlow Version 9 export
format.
introduced or modified: ip flow-
cache mpls label-positions and
show ip cache verbose flow.
Glossary
AToM --Any Transport over MPLS. A protocol that provides a common framework for encapsulating and
transporting supported Layer 2 traffic types over a Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) network core.
(EGP). A BGP system exchanges reachability information with other BGP systems. It is defined by RFC
1163.
CE router --customer edge router. A router that is part of a customer network and that interfaces to a
provider edge (PE) router. CE routers do not have routes to associated VPNs in their routing tables.
core router --In a packet-switched star topology, a router that is part of the backbone and that serves as the
single pipe through which all traffic from peripheral networks must pass on its way to other peripheral
networks.
EGP --Exterior Gateway Protocol. Internet protocol for exchanging routing information between
autonomous systems. It is documented in RFC 904. This term is not to be confused with the general term
exterior gateway protocol. EGP is an obsolete protocol that was replaced by Border Gateway Protocol
(BGP).

173
Glossary
export packet --(NetFlow) A packet from a device (for example, a router) with NetFlow services enabled
that is addressed to another device (for example, a NetFlow collector). This other device processes the
packet (parses, aggregates, and stores information on IP flows).
FEC --Forward Equivalency Class. A set of packets that can be handled equivalently for the purpose of
forwarding and thus is suitable for binding to a single label. The set of packets destined for an address
prefix is one example of an FEC. A flow is another example.
flow --A unidirectional set of packets (IP or Multiprotocol Label Switching [MPLS]) that arrive at the
router on the same subinterface and have the same source and destination IP addresses, the same Layer 4
protocol, the same TCP/UDP source and destination ports, and the same type of service (ToS) byte in the
IP header.
IPv6 --IP Version 6. Replacement for the current version of IP (Version 4). IPv6 includes support for flow
ID in the packet header, which can be used to identify flows. Formerly called IPng (next generation).
label --A short, fixed-length identifier that tells switching nodes how the data (packets or cells) should be
forwarded.
label imposition --The act of putting a label or labels on a packet.
LDP --Label Distribution Protocol. A standard protocol that operates between Multiprotocol Label
Switching (MPLS)-enabled routers to negotiate the labels (addresses) used to forward packets. The Cisco
proprietary version of this protocol is the Tag Distribution Protocol (TDP).
LFIB --Label Forwarding Information Base. A data structure and way of managing forwarding in which
destinations and incoming labels are associated with outgoing interfaces and labels.
LSR --label switch router. A router that forwards packets in a Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS)
network by looking only at the fixed-length label.
MPLS --Multiprotocol Label Switching. A switching method in which IP traffic is forwarded through use
of a label. This label instructs the routers and the switches in the network where to forward the packets. The
forwarding of MPLS packets is based on preestablished IP routing information.
MPLS flow --A unidirectional sequence of Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) packets that arrive at a
router on the same subinterface and have the same source and destination IP addresses, the same Layer 4
protocol, the same TCP/UDP source and destination ports, and the same type of service (ToS) byte in the
IP header. A TCP session is an example of a flow.
packet header -- (NetFlow) The first part of an export packet that provides basic information about the
packet, such as the NetFlow version, number of records contained within the packet, and sequence
numbering. The header information enables lost packets to be detected.
PE router --provider edge router. A router that is part of a service providers network connected to a
customer edge (CE) router. All VPN processing occurs in the PE router.
P router --provider core or backbone router. A router that is part of a service providers core or backbone
network and is connected to the provider edge (PE) routers.
TDP --Tag Distribution Protocol. The Cisco proprietary version of the protocol (label distribution protocol)
between Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS)-enabled routers to negotiate the labels (addresses) used to
forward packets.
TE --traffic engineering. Techniques and processes that cause routed traffic to travel through the network
on a path other than the one that would have been chosen if standard routing methods were used.
TE tunnel --traffic engineering tunnel. A label-switched tunnel that is used for traffic engineering. Such a
tunnel is set up through means other than normal Layer 3 routing; it is used to direct traffic over a path
different from the one that Layer 3 routing could cause the tunnel to take.

174
VPN --Virtual Private Network. A secure IP-based network that shares resources on one or more physical
networks. A VPN contains geographically dispersed sites that can communicate securely over a shared
backbone.

175

176
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting
This document contains information about and instructions for configuring NetFlow multicast accounting.
NetFlow multicast accounting allows you to capture multicast-specific data (both packets and bytes) for
multicast flows.

Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting, page 177
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting, page 178
Information About Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting, page 178
How to Configure NetFlow Multicast Accounting, page 179
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Multicast Accounting, page 185
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting, page 188
Glossary, page 189

Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting

Before you can configure NetFlow multicast accounting, you must:
Configure Multicast fast switching or multicast distributed fast switching (MDFS); multicast Cisco
Express Forwarding (CEF) switching is not supported.
Configure Multicast routing.
Configure NetFlow v9 (Version 9) data export (otherwise, multicast data is visible in the cache but is
not exported).

177
NetFlow Multicast Benefits
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting

Memory Impact
If traffic is heavy, the additional flows might fill the global flow hash table. If you must increase the size of
the global flow hash table, you must also add memory to the router.
NetFlow has a maximum cache size of 65,536 flow record entries of 64 bytes each. To deduce the packet-
replication factor, multicast accounting adds 16 bytes (for a total of 80 bytes) to each multicast flow record.
Performance Impact
Ingress multicast accounting does not greatly affect performance. Because of the additional accounting-
related computation that occurs in the traffic-forwarding path of the router, egress NetFlow multicast
accounting might degrade network performance slightly, but it does not limit the functionality of the router.
Multicast Addresses
NetFlow data cannot be exported to multicast addresses.
Information About Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting

NetFlow Multicast Benefits, page 178
Multicast Ingress and Multicast Egress Accounting, page 178
NetFlow Multicast Flow Records, page 179
NetFlow Multicast Benefits

NetFlow multicast allows you to capture multicast-specific data (both packets and bytes) for multicast
flows. For example, you can capture the packet-replication factor for a specific flow as well as for each
outgoing stream. NetFlow multicast provides complete end-to-end usage information about network traffic
for a complete multicast traffic billing solution.
You can use NetFlow multicast accounting to identify and count multicast packets on the ingress side or the
egress side (or both sides) of a router. Multicast ingress accounting provides information about the source
and how many times the traffic was replicated. Multicast egress accounting monitors the destination of the
traffic flow.
NetFlow multicast lets you enable NetFlow statistics to account for all packets that fail the reverse path
forwarding (RPF) check and that are dropped in the core of the service provider network. Accounting for
RPF-failed packets provides more accurate traffic statistics and patterns.
Multicast Ingress and Multicast Egress Accounting

NetFlow multicast lets you select either multicast ingress accounting, in which a replication factor (equal to
the number of output interfaces) indicates the load, or multicast egress accounting, in which all outgoing
multicast streams are counted as separate streams, or both multicast ingress and multicast egress
accounting.

178
NetFlow Multicast Flow Records
How to Configure NetFlow Multicast Accounting
NetFlow multicast lets you collect information about how much data is leaving the interfaces of the router
(egress and multicast ingress accounting) or how much multicast data is received (multicast ingress
accounting).
On the ingress side, multicast packets are counted as with unicast packets, but with two additional fields
(for number of replicated packets and byte count). With multicast ingress accounting, the destination
interface field is set to null, and the IP next hop field is set to 0 for multicast flows.
NetFlow Multicast Flow Records

Multicast ingress accounting creates one flow record that indicates how many times each packet is
replicated. Multicast egress accounting creates a unique flow record for each outgoing interface.

Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Releases 12.4(12), page 179
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Cisco IOS Releases Prior to 12.4(12), page 181
Verifying the NetFlow Multicast Accounting Configuration, page 184
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Releases 12.4(12)

Perform the steps in this required task to configure NetFlow multicast accounting.
You must have already configured IP multicast on the networking devices in your network. See the Cisco
IOS IP Multicast Configuration Guide , for more information on configuring IP multicast.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip multicast-routing [vrf vrf-name] [distributed]
4. ip multicast netflow rpf-failure
5. ip multicast netflow output-counters
7. ip flow ingress
8. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable

179

Example:
Step 3 ip multicast-routing [vrf vrf-name] [distributed] Enables IP multicast routing.

The vrf keyword supports the multicast Virtual Private
Network (VPN) routing/forwarding instance (VRF).
Example:
The vrf-name argument is the name assigned to the
Router(config)# ip multicast-routing VRF.
The distributed keyword enables Multicast Distributed
Switching (MDS).
Step 4 ip multicast netflow rpf-failure Enables accounting for multicast data that fails the RPF
check.
Example:
Router(config)# ip multicast netflow rpf-failure
Step 5 ip multicast netflow output-counters Enables accounting for the number of bytes and packets
forwarded.
Example:
Router(config)# ip multicast netflow output-

counters
Step 6 interface type number Specifies the interface and enters interface configuration
mode.
Example:
Router(config)# interface fastethernet 0/0
Step 7 ip flow ingress Enables NetFlow ingress accounting.
Example:
Step 8 end Exits the current configuration mode and returns to

privileged EXEC mode.
Example:

180
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Cisco IOS Releases Prior to 12.4(12)
If there are no multicast flow records in the NetFlow cache, check the multicast switching counters for the
existence of process-switched packets (NetFlow exports only fast-switched or MDFS-switched packets). If
process-switched packets are present, check the MDFS routing table to help determine potential problems.
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Cisco IOS Releases Prior to

12.4(12)
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Egress Accounting, page 181
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Ingress Accounting, page 182
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Egress Accounting

Perform the steps in this required task to configure NetFlow multicast egress accounting.
IOS IP Multicast Configuration Guide, for more information on configuring IP multicast.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
6. ip multicast netflow egress
7. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:

181

The vrf keyword supports the multicast Virtual Private
Network (VPN) routing/forwarding instance (VRF).
Example:
The vrf-name argument is the name assigned to the VRF.
Router(config)# ip multicast-routing The distributed keyword enables Multicast Distributed
Switching (MDS).
Example:
Step 4 ip multicast netflow rpf-failure Enables accounting for multicast data that fails the RPF check.
Example:
Step 5 interface type number Specifies the interface and enters interface configuration mode.
Example:
Step 6 ip multicast netflow egress Enables NetFlow multicast egress accounting.
Example:
Router(config-if)# ip multicast netflow egress
EXEC mode.
Example:
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Ingress Accounting

Perform the steps in this required task to configure NetFlow multicast ingress accounting.
Multicast ingress NetFlow accounting is enabled by default.

182
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Ingress Accounting
IOS IP Multicast Configuration Guide, for more information on configuring IP multicast.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
6. ip multicast netflow ingress
7. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:

The vrf keyword supports the multicast VRF.
Example: The vrf-name argument is the name assigned to the VRF.
The distributed keyword enables Multicast Distributed
Router(config)# ip multicast-routing Switching (MDS).
Example:
Step 4 ip multicast netflow rpf-failure Enables accounting for multicast data that fails the RPF check.
Example:

183
Verifying the NetFlow Multicast Accounting Configuration

Step 5 interface type number Specifies the interface and enters interface configuration mode.
Example:
Step 6 ip multicast netflow ingress Enables NetFlow multicast ingress accounting.
Example:
Router(config-if)# ip multicast netflow ingress
EXEC mode.
Example:
Verifying the NetFlow Multicast Accounting Configuration

Perform the steps in this optional task to verify the NetFlow multicast accounting configuration.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Example:
Router> enable
Router#

184
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Original Releases
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Multicast Accounting
Use this command to verify that NetFlow multicast accounting is configured. Look for the two additional fields
related to multicast data, that is, the number of IP multicast output packet and byte counts. For example:
Example:

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.997 .002 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
UDP-other 12 0.0 1 52 0.0 0.1 15.6
Total: 12 0.0 1 52 0.0 0.1 15.6
IPM: OPkts OBytes
Et0/0 10.1.1.1 Null 224.192.16.1 01 55 10 5164
0000 /0 0 0000 /0 0 0.0.0.0 20 262.8
IPM: 15K 309K
Et0/0 10.1.1.1 Null 255.255.255.255 11 C0 10 1
0208 /0 0 0208 /0 0 0.0.0.0 52 0.0
Router#
The Opkts column displays the number of IP multicast (IPM) output packets, the OBytes column displays the number
of IPM output bytes, and the DstIPaddress column displays the destination IP address for the IPM output packets.
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Multicast Accounting

Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Original Releases, page 185
Configuring NetFlow MC Accounting in Releases Prior to 12.2(33)SRB, page 186
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting in Original Releases

The following example shows how to configure multicast NetFlow accounting:
configure terminal
ip multicast-routing
ip multicast netflow rpf-failure
ip multicast netflow output-counters
!
ip flow ingress
end

185
Configuring NetFlow MC Accounting in Releases Prior to 12.2(33)SRB
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Egress Accounting Example
Configuring NetFlow MC Accounting in Releases Prior to 12.2(33)SRB

Configuring NetFlow Multicast Egress Accounting Example, page 186
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Ingress Accounting Example, page 186
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Egress Accounting Example

The following example shows how to configure multicast egress NetFlow accounting on the egress
Ethernet 0/0 interface:
configure terminal
!
ip multicast netflow egress
end
Configuring NetFlow Multicast Ingress Accounting Example

The following example shows how to configure multicast ingress NetFlow accounting on the ingress
Ethernet 1/0 interface:
configure terminal
!
ip multicast netflow ingress
end
Related Documents

NetFlow

186

With SCTP
Standards
Standards Title
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

No new or modified MIBS are supported by this To locate and download MIBs for selected

187
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting
RFCs
RFCs Title
Description Link
content.
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Multicast

Accounting
feature.

188
Glossary
Table 37 Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Multicast Accounting

NetFlow Multicast Support 12.3(1), 12.2(18)S, 12.2(27)SBC, The NetFlow Multicast Support
12.2(33)SXF, 12.2(33)SRB feature lets you capture multicast-
specific data (both packets and
bytes) for multicast flows. For
example, you can capture the
packet-replication factor for a
specific flow as well as for each
outgoing stream. This feature
provides complete end-to-end
usage information about network
traffic for a complete multicast
traffic billing solution.
introduced by this feature: ip
multicast netflow egress, ip
multicast netflow ingress, and ip
multicast netflow rpf-failure.
NetFlow Multicast Support6 12.4(11)T, 12.4(12), 12.(33)SRB, The ip multicast netflow

12.2(33)SB, 12.2(33)SXH [ingress | egress] interface
configuration command was
replaced by the ip multicast
netflow output-counters global
configuration command.
Glossary
egress traffic --Traffic leaving the network.
fast switching --Cisco feature in which a route cache is used for expediting packet switching through a
router.
ingress traffic --Traffic entering the network.
multicast data --Single packets copied by the network and sent to a specific subset of network addresses.
These addresses are specified in the Destination Address field.
6 This was a minor modification to the existing NetFlow Multicast Support feature. Minor feature modifications are not included in Feature Navigator.

189
NetFlow Collection Engine (formerly called NetFlow FlowCollector)--A Cisco application that is used
with NetFlow on Cisco routers and Catalyst series switches. The NetFlow Collection Engine collects
packets from the router that is running NetFlow and decodes, aggregates, and stores them. You can
RPF --Reverse Path Forwarding. Multicasting technique in which a multicast datagram is forwarded out of
all but the receiving interface if the receiving interface is the one used to forward unicast datagrams to the
source of the multicast datagram.
ToS byte --type of service byte. Second byte in the IP header that indicates the desired quality of service
(QoS) for a particular datagram.

190
Configuring SNMP and using the NetFlow MIB
to Monitor NetFlow Data
NetFlow is a technology that provides highly granular per-flow statistics on traffic in a Cisco router. The
NetFlow MIB feature provides MIB objects to allow users to configure NetFlow and to monitor flow
cache information, the current NetFlow configuration, and statistics.

Prerequisites for Configuring SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data, page 191
Restrictions for Configuring SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data, page 192
Information About Configuring SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data, page 192
How to Configure SNMP and use the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data, page 194
Configuration Examples using SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data, page 208
Feature Information for Configuring SNMP and using the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data,
page 212
Glossary, page 212

Prerequisites for Configuring SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to

Before you enable NetFlow you must:

191
NetFlow MIB Feature Benefits
Restrictions for Configuring SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data
CPU resources
Configure SNMP on the router on which the NetFlow MIB feature is to be used. Refer to the
Configuring the Router to use SNMP, page 195 for more information. For more information on
configuring an SNMP server, refer to the Configuring SNMP Support in the Cisco IOS Network
Management Configuration Guide .
Restrictions for Configuring SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to

Information About Configuring SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to

NetFlow MIB Feature Benefits, page 192
NetFlow MIB Overview, page 192
Using SNMP and MIBs to Extract NetFlow Information, page 194
Objects That are Used by the NetFlow MIB, page 194
NetFlow MIB Feature Benefits

NetFlow is a technology that collects traffic flow statistics on routing devices. NetFlow has been used for a
variety of applications, including traffic engineering, usage-based billing, and denial of service (DoS)
attack monitoring.
The NetFlow MIB feature is useful for obtaining IP flow information from a Cisco router when a NetFlow
export operation is not possible. NetFlow exporting does not have to be enabled for the NetFlow MIB
feature to be used. The NetFlow MIB feature can be implemented instantaneously at any point in the
network to obtain flow information.
With the NetFlow MIB feature, system information that is stored in the flow cache can be accessed in real
time by utilizing a MIB implementation based on SNMP. This information is accessed using get and set
commands entered on the network management system (NMS) workstation for which SNMP has been
implemented. The NMS workstation is also known as the SNMP manager.
NetFlow MIB Overview

The Netflow MIB provides a simple and easy method to configure NetFlow, NetFlow aggregation caches,
and NetFlow Data Export. You use the snmpget and snmpwalk tools to get NetFlow cache information and

192
Configuring SNMP and using the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data
Terminology Used
current NetFlow configuration information. The NetFlow MIB feature enables medium to small size
enterprises to take advantage of NetFlow technology over SNMP at a reduced infrastructure cost. The MIB
is created to provide Netflow information in these areas:
Cache information and configuration.
Export information and configuration.
Export Statistics.
Protocol Statistics.
Version 9 Export Template information.
Top Flows information.
Terminology Used, page 193
Terminology Used
Flow
A flow is defined as an unidirectional sequence of packets between a given source and destination
endpoints. Network flows are highly granular; flow endpoints are identified both by IP address as well as
by transport layer application port numbers. NetFlow also utilizes the IP Protocol type, Type of Service
(ToS) and the input interface identifier to uniquely identify flows.
Exporter
A device (for example, a router) with NetFlow services enabled. The exporter monitors packets entering an
observation point and creates flows out of these packets. The information from these flows are exported in
the form of Flow Records to the collector. You can configure NetFlow data export using the NetFlow MIB.
Flow Record
A Flow Record provides information about an IP Flow that exists on the Exporter. The Flow Records are
commonly referred to as NetFlow Services data or NetFlow data.
Collector
The NetFlow Collector receives Flow Records from one or more Exporters. It processes the received export
packet, i.e. parses, stores the Flow Record information. The flow records may be optionally aggregated
before storing into the hard disk.
Template
NetFlow Version 9 Export format is template based. Version 9 record format consists of a packet header
followed by at least one or more template or data FlowSets. A template FlowSet (collection of one or more
template) provides a description of the fields that will be present in future data FlowSets. Templates
provide an extensible design to the record format, a feature that should allow future enhancements to
NetFlow services without requiring concurrent changes to the basic flow-record format.
One additional record type is also a part of Version 9 specification: an options template. Rather than
supplying information about IP flows, options are used to supply meta-data about the NetFlow process
itself.

193
Using SNMP and MIBs to Extract NetFlow Information
How to Configure SNMP and use the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data
Top Flows
This feature provides a mechanism which allows the top N flows in the NetFlow cache to be viewed in real
time.
Criteria can be set to limit the feature to particular flows of interest, which can aid in DoS detection.
Only the number of flows (TopN) and the sort criteria (SortBy) need be set.
Top Flows is not intended as a mechanism for exporting the entire netflow cache.
For more information on the Top Flows and the NetFlow MIB refer to the Configuring NetFlow Top
Talkers using Cisco IOS CLI Commands or SNMP Commands.
Egress flows
This feature analyzes traffic that is being forwarded by the router. This feature is often referred to as Egress
NetFlow.
Using SNMP and MIBs to Extract NetFlow Information

SNMP has historically been used to collect network information. SNMP permits retrieval of critical
information from network elements such as routers, switches, and workstations. The NetFlow MIB feature
uses SNMP to configure NetFlow and to gather NetFlow statistics.
The NetFlow MIB feature allows NetFlow statistics and other NetFlow data for the managed devices on
your system to be retrieved by SNMP. You can specify retrieval of NetFlow information from a managed
device (for example, a router) either by entering commands on that managed device or by entering SNMP
commands from the NMS workstation to configure the router via the MIB. If the NetFlow information is
configured from the NMS workstation, no access to the router is required and all configuration can be
performed via SNMP. The NetFlow MIB request for information is sent from an NMS workstation via
SNMP to the router and is retrieved from the router. This information can then be stored or viewed, thus
allowing NetFlow information to be easily accessed and transported across a multi-vendor programming
environment.
Objects That are Used by the NetFlow MIB

The NetFlow MIB feature defines managed objects that enable a network administrator to remotely
monitor the following NetFlow information:
Flow cache configuration information
NetFlow export information
General NetFlow statistics
How to Configure SNMP and use the NetFlow MIB to Monitor

NetFlow Data

194
Configuring the Router to use SNMP
Note Some of the tasks in this section include examples of the SNMP CLI syntax used to set configuration
parameters on the router, and to read values from MIB objects on the router. These SNMP CLI syntax
examples are taken from a Linux workstation using public domain SNMP tools. The SNMP CLI syntax for
your workstation might be different. Refer to the documentation that was provided with your SNMP tools
for the correct syntax for your network management workstation.
Configuring the Router to use SNMP, page 195

Configuring Options for the Main Cache, page 196
Configuring Options for the Main Cache, page 198
Identifying the Interface Number to use for Enabling NetFlow with SNMP, page 199
Configuring NetFlow on an Interface, page 199
Configuring NetFlow on an Interface, page 201
Configuring the Destination-Prefix Aggregation Cache, page 201
Configuring the Destination-Prefix Aggregation Cache, page 203
Configuring NetFlow Export from the Main NetFlow Cache using the Version 9 Export Format, page
205
Configuring NetFlow Export from the Main NetFlow Cache using the Version 9 Export Format, page
207
Configuring the Router to use SNMP

Before the NetFlow MIB feature can be used, the router must be configured to support SNMP. To enable
SNMP on the router, perform this task.
Note The SNMP community read-only (RO) string for the examples is public. The SNMP community read-write
(RW) string for the examples is private. You should use more complex strings for these values in your
configurations.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. snmp-server community string ro
4. snmp-server community string rw
5. end

195
Configuring Options for the Main Cache
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 snmp-server community string ro (Required) Sets up the community access string to permit access to SNMP.
The string argument is a community string that consists of from 1 to 32
alphanumeric characters and functions much like a password, permitting
Example:
access to the SNMP protocol. Blank spaces are not permitted in the
Router(config)# snmp-server community string.
community public ro The ro keyword specifies read-only access. SNMP management stations
using this string can retrieve MIB objects.
Step 4 snmp-server community string rw (Required) Sets up the community access string to permit access to SNMP.
Example:
community private rw The rw keyword specifies read-write access. SNMP management stations
using this string can retrieve and modify MIB objects.
Note The string argument must be different from the read-only string argument
specified in the preceding step (Step 3).
Step 5 end (Required) Exits the current configuration mode and returns to privileged EXEC
mode.
Example:
Router(config)# end

This optional task describes the procedure for modifying the parameters for the NetFlow main cache.
Perform the steps in this optional task using either the router CLI commands or the SNMP commands to
modify the parameters for the NetFlow main cache.

196
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
6. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 ip flow-cache entries number (Optional) Specifies the maximum number of entries to be captured for the
main flow cache.
Note The valid range for the number argument is from 1024 to 524288
Example: entries.
Router(config)# ip flow-cache
entries 4000
Step 4 ip flow-cache timeout active minutes (Optional) Configures operational parameters for the main cache.
The timeout keyword dissolves the session in the cache.
Example: The active minutes keyword-argument pair is the number of minutes
that an entry is active. The range is from 1 to 60 minutes. The default is
Router(config)# ip flow-cache 30 minutes.
timeout active 30
Step 5 ip flow-cache timeout inactive seconds (Optional) Configures operational parameters for the main cache.
The timeout keyword dissolves the session in the main cache.
Example: The inactive secondskeyword-argument pair is the number of seconds
that an inactive entry will stay in the main cache before it times out. The
Router(config)# ip flow-cache range is from 10 to 600 seconds. The default is 15 seconds.

197

EXEC mode.
Example:
Router(config)# end

SUMMARY STEPS
1. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfCICacheEntries.type unsigned number

2. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfCIActiveTimeOut.type unsigned number
3. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] ccnfCIInactiveTimeOut.type unsigned
number
DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Optional) Defines the maximum number of entries to be captured for the
hostname] cnfCICacheEntries.type unsigned main flow cache.
number
The value for the type argument in cnfCICacheEntries.type
unsigned number is 0 for the main cache.
Example: The value for the number argument in
cnfCICacheEntries.typenumber is the maximum number of cache
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all entries.
-v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfCICacheEntries.0
unsigned 4000 Note The valid range for the number argument is from 1024 to 524288
entries.
Step 2 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Optional) Specifies the number of seconds that an active flow remains in
hostname] cnfCIActiveTimeOut.type the main cache before it times out.
unsigned number
The value for the type argument in cnfCIActiveTimeout.type
Example: The value for the number argument in cnfCIActiveTimeout.type
unsigned number is the number of seconds that an active flow
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all remains in the cache before it times out.
-v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfCIActiveTimeOut.0
unsigned 60 Note The range for the number argument is from 1 to 60 minutes. The
default is 30 minutes.

198
Identifying the Interface Number to use for Enabling NetFlow with SNMP

Step 3 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Optional) Specifies the number of seconds that an inactive flow remains
hostname] ccnfCIInactiveTimeOut.type in the main cache before it times out.
unsigned number
The value for the type argument in cnfCIInactiveTimeout.type
Example: The value for the number argument in cnfCIInactiveTimeout.type
unsigned number is the number of seconds that an inactive flow
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all remains in the main cache before it times out.
-v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfCIInactiveTimeOut.0
unsigned 30 Note The range for the number argument is from 10 to 600 seconds.
The default is 15 seconds.
Identifying the Interface Number to use for Enabling NetFlow with SNMP
Before you can use SNMP to enable NetFlow on an interface, you must identify the correct SNMP
interface number on the router. To identify the interface number for the interface that you want to enable
NetFlow on, perform the steps in this task.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
2. show snmp mib ifmib ifindex type number
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Enters privileged EXEC mode. Enter the password if prompted.
Example:
Router> enable
Step 2 show snmp mib ifmib ifindex type number
Displays the SNMP interface number for the interface specified.
Example:
Router# show snmp mib ifmib ifindex fastethernet 0/0

Ethernet0/0: Ifindex = 1
Configuring NetFlow on an Interface

Perform the task using either the router CLI commands or the SNMP commands to enable NetFlow on the
router.

199
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
5. exit
7. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 interface type number (Required) Specifies the interface that you want to enable
NetFlow on and enters interface configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config)# interface fastethernet0/0

ingress --captures traffic that is being received by the
interface
Example:
egress --captures traffic that is being transmitted by the
Router(config-if)# ip flow ingress interface.
Example:
and/or
Example:
Router(config-if)# ip flow egress

200

Step 5 exit (Optional) Exits interface configuration mode and returns to
global configuration mode.
Note You only need to use this command if you want to
Example: enable NetFlow on another interface.
Step 6 Repeat Steps 3 through 5 to enable NetFlow on other (Optional) --

interfaces.
Step 7 end (Required) Exits the current configuration mode and returns to
Example:

SUMMARY STEPS
1. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfCINetflowEnable.interface-number integer
[0 | 1 | 2 | 3]
2. Repeat Step 1 to enable NetFlow on other interfaces
DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] (Required) Configures NetFlow for an interface.
cnfCINetflowEnable.interface-number integer [0 | 1 | 2 | 3] Note The value for the interface-number argument is
found by entering the router CLI command
show snmp mib ifmib ifindex on the router in
Example: privileged EXEC mode.
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 The values for the direction argument are:
cnfCINetflowEnable.1 integer 1
0--Disable NetFlow
1--Enable Ingress NetFlow
2--Enable Egress NetFlow
3--Enable Ingress and Egress NetFlow
Step 2 Repeat Step 1 to enable NetFlow on other interfaces (Optional) --
Configuring the Destination-Prefix Aggregation Cache

This task describes the procedure for modifying the parameters for aggregation caches. The destination-
prefix is used in this task. With the exception of specifying the aggregation cache that you want to modify,
the steps are the same for modifying these parameters for the other aggregation caches.

201
Perform this task using either the router CLI commands or the SNMP commands to modify configuration
parameters for an aggregation cache.
You must enable NetFlow on at least one interface before configuring a NetFlow aggregation cache.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-aggregation cache destination-prefix
4. cache entries number
5. cache timeout active minutes
6. cache timeout inactive seconds
7. enable
8. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 ip flow-aggregation cache destination-prefix (Required) Enters aggregation cache configuration mode for the
destination-prefixaggregation cache.
The destination-prefixkeyword is equivalent to the type
Example:
argument of 4 in Step 2 of the SNMP commands.
Router(config)# ip flow-aggregation
cache destination-prefix Note For information on other keywords for this command, see the
Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference .
Step 4 cache entries number (Optional) Defines the number of entries that are allowed in the
aggregation flow cache.
Example:
Router(config-flow-cache)# cache entries

4000

202

Step 5 cache timeout active minutes (Optional) Specifies the number of minutes that an active flow remains
in the cache before it times out.
Note The range is from 1 to 60 minutes. The default is 30 minutes.
Example:
Router(config)# cache timeout active 30
Step 6 cache timeout inactive seconds (Optional) Specifies the number of seconds that an inactive flow
remains in the cache before it times out.
Note The range is from 10 to 600 seconds. The default is 15 seconds.
Example:
Router(config-flow-cache)
# cache timeout inactive 100
Step 7 enable (Required) Activates the destination-prefixaggregation cache.
Example:
Router(config-flow-cache)
# enable
Step 8 end (Required) Exits the current configuration mode and returns to
Example:

SUMMARY STEPS
1. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfCICacheEnable.type integer truth-value

2. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfCICacheEntries. type unsigned number
3. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfCIActiveTimeOut. type unsigned number
4. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] ccnfCIInactiveTimeOut. type unsigned
number

203
DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Required) Enables the aggregation cache.
hostname] cnfCICacheEnable.type integer
Values for the type argument are:
truth-value
Main--0
AS--1
Example: Protocol Port--2
workstation% snmpset -c private -m Source Prefix--3
all -v2c 10.4.9.14 cnfCICacheEnable.4 Destination Prefix--4
integer 1
prefix--5
Destination Only--6
Source Destination--7
Full Flow--8
AS ToS--9
Protocol Port ToS--10
Source Prefix ToS--11
Destination Prefix Tos--12
Prefix Tos--13
Prefix Port--14
BGP Nexthop Tos--15
Values for truth-value in cnfCICacheEnable.type integer truth-
valueare:
1--enable the aggregation cache
2--disable the aggregation cache
Step 2 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Optional) Defines the maximum number of entries to be captured for the
hostname] cnfCICacheEntries. type aggregation flow cache.
unsigned number
unsigned number is 4 for the destination-prefix cache.
Example: The value for the number argument in cnfCICacheEntries.type
unsigned number is the maximum number of cache entries.
workstation% snmpset -c private -m
all -v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfCICacheEntries. Note The valid range for the number argument is from 1024 to 524288
4 unsigned 4000 entries.

204
Configuring NetFlow Export from the Main NetFlow Cache using the Version 9 Export Format

Step 3 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Optional) Specifies the number of seconds that an active flow remains in
hostname] cnfCIActiveTimeOut. type the cache before it times out.
unsigned number
workstation% snmpset -c private -m remains in the cache before it times out.
all -v2c 10.4.9.14 cnfCIActiveTimeOut.
4 unsigned 60 Note The range for the number argument is from 1 to 60 minutes. The
Step 4 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Optional) Specifies the number of seconds that an inactive flow remains
hostname] ccnfCIInactiveTimeOut. type in the cache before it times out.
unsigned number
workstation% snmpset -c private -m remains in the cache before it times out.
all -v2c 10.4.9.14
cnfCIInactiveTimeOut.4 unsigned 30 Note The range for the number argument is from 10 to 600 seconds. The
default is 15 seconds.
Configuring NetFlow Export from the Main NetFlow Cache using the Version
9 Export Format
The following example shows how to configure the router to export statistics from the NetFlow main cache
(0), including peer autonomous system and BGP-related information using export Version 9.
Perform this task using either the router CLI commands or the SNMP commands to configure the router to
export statistics from the main cache using the Version 9.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-export version 9 [ origin-as | peer-as] [ bgp-nexthop ]
4. ip flow-export destination {ip-address | hostname} udp-port}
5. Repeat Step 4 to add a second NetFlow collector
6. end

205
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 ip flow-export version 9 [ origin-as | peer- (Required) Enables the export of information in NetFlow cache entries.
as] [ bgp-nexthop ]
Version 9 format.
Example: The origin-as keyword specifies that export statistics include the
originating AS for the source and destination.
Router(config)# ip flow-export The peer-as keyword specifies that export statistics include the peer
version 9 peer-as bgp-nexthop
AS for the source and destination.
reloads the route processor and line card CEF tables. To avoid
interruption of service to a live network, apply this command
during a change window, or include it in the startup-config file to
be executed during a router reboot.
Step 4 ip flow-export destination {ip-address | (Required) Specifies the IP address, or hostname of the NetFlow collector,
hostname} udp-port} and the UDP port the NetFlow collector is listening on.
Example:
Step 5 Repeat Step 4 to add a second NetFlow (Optional) --

collector
EXEC mode.
Example:
Router(config)# end

206
Configuring NetFlow Export from the Main NetFlow Cache using the Version 9 Export Format
Configuring NetFlow Export from the Main NetFlow Cache using the Version
9 Export Format
SUMMARY STEPS
1. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfEIExportVersion.type unsigned version

cnfEIPeerAS. type integer truth-value cnfEIBgpNextHop.type integer truth-value
2. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfEICollectorStatus. type . address-type . ip-
version . ip-address . port integer [4 | 6]
3. Repeat Step 2 to add another collector
DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Required) Specifies the export format and that the export statistics
hostname] cnfEIExportVersion.type unsigned include peer autonomous system and BGP-related information.
version cnfEIPeerAS. type integer truth-value
The values for the type argument are:
cnfEIBgpNextHop.type integer truth-value
Main--0
AS--1
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all - Source Prefix--3
v2c 10.4.9.14 cnfEIExportVersion.0 Destination Prefix--4
unsigned 9 cnfEIPeerAS.0 integer 1
cnfEIBgpNextHop.0 integer 1 prefix--5
Destination Only--6
Full Flow--8
AS ToS--9
Prefix Tos--13
Prefix Port--14
BGP Nexthop Tos--15
The values for the version argument are:
5--Version 5 export format. The number of records stored in
the datagram is a variable between 1 and 30 for the Version 5
export format.
9--Version 9 export format.
The values for the truth-value argument are:
1--enable the keyword
2--disable the keyword

207
Configuration Examples using SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data

Step 2 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Required) Enables the exporting of information in NetFlow cache
hostname] cnfEICollectorStatus. type . entries.
address-type . ip-version . ip-address . port
Values the type argument are:
integer [4 | 6]
Main--0
AS--1
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all - Source Prefix--3
v2c 10.4.9.14 cnfEICollectorStatus. Destination Prefix--4
0.1.4.10.0.19.2.3 integer 4
prefix--5
Destination Only--6
Full Flow--8
AS ToS--9
Prefix Tos--13
Prefix Port--14
BGP Nexthop Tos--15
The address-type, and ip-version arguments specify the type of IP
address.
The address-type argument is 1.
The ip-version argument is the length in bytes of the address.
Currently IPv4 is the only type that is supported, so the ip-
version value should be 4 (four bytes in an IPv4 IP address).
The ip-address variable specifies the IPv4 IP address of the
collector.
The port argument is the UDP port the collector is listening on for
NetFlow data.
The [4 | 6] keywords create and remove the NetFlow collector.
The 4 keyword creates the collector in the routers
configuration, and activates the collector.
The 6 keyword removes the collector from routers
configuration.
Step 3 Repeat Step 2 to add another collector (Optional) --
Configuration Examples using SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to


208
Configuring the Minimum Mask for a Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme using SNMP Example
Configuration Examples using SNMP and the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data
Configuring the Minimum Mask for a Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme using SNMP Example,
page 209
Configuring NetFlow Data Export for the Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme using SNMP Example,
page 209
Configuring a NetFlow Minimum Mask for a Prefix Aggregation Cache using SNMP Example, page
209
Using SNMP to Gather Flow Information From the Router Example, page 209
Configuring the Minimum Mask for a Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme

using SNMP Example
The following example enables a Source-Prefix aggregation cache and sets the source prefix mask to 16
bits.
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.14 cnfCICacheEnable.3 integer 1

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfCICacheEnable.sourcePrefix = INTEGER: true(1)
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.14 cnfCIMinSourceMask.3 unsigned 16
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfCIMinSourceMask.sourcePrefix = Gauge32: 16
Configuring NetFlow Data Export for the Source Prefix Aggregation Scheme
using SNMP Example
The following example enables a Source-Prefix aggregation cache and configures NetFlow Data Export
for the aggregation cache.

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfCICacheEnable.sourcePrefix = INTEGER: true(1)
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.14 cnfEICollectorStatus.
3.1.4.10.0.19.2.3 integer 4
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfEICollectorStatus.sourcePrefix.ipv4."....".3 = INTEGER:
createAndGo(4)
Configuring a NetFlow Minimum Mask for a Prefix Aggregation Cache using

SNMP Example
The following example enables a Prefix aggregation cache and sets the prefix mask to 16 bits.

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfCICacheEnable.prefix = INTEGER: true(1)
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.14 cnfCIMinSourceMask.5
unsigned 16
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfCIMinSourceMask.prefix = Gauge32: 16
Using SNMP to Gather Flow Information From the Router Example

The following examples show how to retrieve NetFlow status and statistics using SNMP.
Retrieving Netflow Statistics using SNMP

This command will retrieve the Netflow Statistics from the main cache using the MIB.
workstation% snmpget -c public -v2c 10.4.9.14 cnfPSPacketSizeDistribution.0

cnfPSPacketSizeDistribution.0 =

209
00 00 00 00 03 e8 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
00 00 00 00
The IP packet size distribution values are in the same order as shown in the CLI, with each pair of bytes
representing a value of 1000 times the respective value in the CLI.
For example, for the packet range 65-96, the byte pair is 0x03e8 which is 1000 times 1. So to obtain the
same values as the CLI, divide the value by 1000.
View the NetFlow Main Cache Timeout Values using SNMP

This command will retrieve the cache timeout values from the main cache using the MIB.
workstation% snmpget -c public -v2c 10.4.9.14 cnfCIActiveFlows.0 cnfCIInactiveFlows.0

cnfCIActiveTimeOut.0 cnfCIInactiveTimeOut.0
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfCIActiveFlows.main = Gauge32: 1
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfCIInactiveFlows.main = Gauge32: 3999
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfCIActiveTimeOut.main = Gauge32: 60 minutes
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfCIInactiveTimeOut.main = Gauge32: 30 seconds
Related Documents

NetFlow

210

With SCTP
Standards
Standards Title
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB.my To locate and download MIBs for selected

Cisco MIB Locator found at the following URL
(requires CCO login account):
RFCs
RFCs Title

211
Feature Information for Configuring SNMP and using the NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data
Description Link
content.
Feature Information for Configuring SNMP and using the

NetFlow MIB to Monitor NetFlow Data
feature.
Table 38 Feature Information for Configuring the NetFlow Top Talkers Feature using the Cisco IOS CLI or
SNMP Commands

NetFlow MIB 12.3(7)T, 12.2(25)S 12.2(27)SBC The NetFlow MIB feature
12.2(33)SRD provides MIB objects to allow
users to monitor NetFlow cache
information, the current NetFlow
configuration, and statistics.
flow-cache timeout.
Glossary
RFC 1163.
BGP next hop --IP address of the next hop to be used to reach a specific destination.

212
MIB --Management Information Base. Database of network management information that is used and
maintained by a network management protocol, such as Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) or
the Common Management Information Protocol (CMIP). The value of a MIB object can be changed or
retrieved using SNMP or CMIP commands, usually through a GUI network management system. MIB
objects are organized in a tree structure that includes public (standard) and private (proprietary) branches.
NetFlow Collection Engine (formerly NetFlow FlowCollector)--A Cisco application that is used with
NMS --network management system. A system responsible for managing at least part of a network. An
NMS is generally a reasonably powerful and well-equipped computer, such as an engineering workstation.
NMSs communicate with agents to help keep track of network statistics and resources.
SNMP --Simple Network Management Protocol. A network management protocol used almost exclusively
in TCP/IP networks. SNMP provides a means to monitor and control network devices, and to manage
configurations, statistics collection, performance, and security.
SNMP communities --An authentication scheme that enables an intelligent network device to validate
SNMP requests.
ToS byte --type of service byte. Second byte in the IP header that indicates the desired quality of service
for a particular datagram.

213
Using SNMP to Gather Flow Information From the Router Example

214
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using Cisco
IOS CLI Commands or SNMP Commands
This module contains information about and instructions for configuring NetFlow Top Talkers feature.
The NetFlow Top Talkers feature can be configured using the Cisco IOS command-line interface (CLI) or
with SNMP commands using the NetFlow MIB. The NetFlow Top Talkers feature uses NetFlow
functionality to obtain information regarding heaviest traffic patterns and most-used applications in the
network. The NetFlow MIB allows you to configure NetFlow and the NetFlow Top Talkers feature using
SNMP commands from a network management workstation.

Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers, page 215
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers, page 216
Information About Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers, page 216
How to Configure NetFlow Top Talkers using Cisco IOS CLI Commands or SNMP Commands,
page 217
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Top Talkers, page 237
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using the Cisco IOS CLI or SNMP
Commands, page 240

Prerequisites for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers

Before you enable NetFlow and NetFlow Top Talkers, you must:

215
Overview of the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers Feature
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers
CPU resources.
Restrictions for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers

Cisco IOS Release 12.2(33)SXH

Some of the keywords and arguments for the commands used to configure the NetFlow MIB and Top
Talkers feature are not supported in 12.2(33)SXH. See the syntax descriptions for the commands in the
command reference (URL for the 12.2SX NF CR to be added later) for details.
Information About Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers

Overview of the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers Feature, page 216
Benefits of the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers Feature, page 217
Cisco IOS Release 12.2(33)SXH on Cisco 6500 Series Switches, page 217
Overview of the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers Feature

NetFlow collects traffic flow statistics on routing devices. NetFlow has been used for a variety of
applications, including traffic engineering, usage-based billing, and monitoring for denial-of-service (DoS)
attacks.
The flows that are generating the heaviest system traffic are known as the "top talkers."
The NetFlow Top Talkers feature allows flows to be sorted so that they can be viewed. The top talkers can
be sorted by either of the following criteria:
By the total number of packets in each top talker
By the total number of bytes in each top talker
The usual implementation of NetFlow exports NetFlow data to a collector. The NetFlow MIB and Top
Talkers feature performs security monitoring and accounting for top talkers and matches and identifies key
users of the network. This feature is also useful for a network location where a traditional NetFlow export
operation is not possible. The NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers feature does not require a collector to obtain
information regarding flows. Instead, these flows are placed in a special cache where they can be viewed.
The NetFlow MIB part of the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers feature allows you to configure the NetFlow
Top Talkers feature using SNMP.
In addition to sorting top talkers, you can further organize your output by specifying criteria that the top
talkers must match, such as source or destination IP address or port. The match command is used to
specify this criterion. For a full list of the matching criteria that you can select, refer to the matchcommand
in the Cisco IOS command reference documentation.

216
Benefits of the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers Feature
How to Configure NetFlow Top Talkers using Cisco IOS CLI Commands or SNMP Commands
Benefits of the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers Feature

Top talkers can be useful for analyzing network traffic in any of the following ways:
Security--You can view the list of top talkers to see if traffic patterns consistent with DoS attack are
present in your network.
Load balancing--You can identify the most heavily used parts of the system and move network traffic
over to less-used parts of the system.
Traffic analysis--Consulting the data retrieved from the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers feature can
assist you in general traffic study and planning for your network.
An additional benefit of the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers feature is that it can be configured for a router
either by entering CLI commands or by entering SNMP commands on a network management system
(NMS) workstation. The SNMP commands are sent to the router and processed by a MIB. You do not have
to be connected to the router console to extract the list of top talkers information if an NMS workstation is
configured to communicate using SNMP to your network device. For more information on configuring
your network device to use MIB functionality for the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers feature, see
Configuring SNMP Support on the Networking Device, page 218.
Cisco IOS Release 12.2(33)SXH on Cisco 6500 Series Switches

The show ip flow top-talkers command was modified in Cisco IOS Release 12.2(33)SXH for the Cisco
6500 Series switches to support displaying the top talkers for a specific module. The show ip flow top-
talkers module number command displays the top talkers for that module. The show ip flow top-talkers
command without the module keyword shows the top talkers in the hardware switched path (a merged list
of top lists from all modules) and then software switched top talkers. The NetFlow MIB can be used to
request the top talker list and to set and/or get the configuration parameters for the NetFlow MIB Top
Talkers feature.
How to Configure NetFlow Top Talkers using Cisco IOS CLI

Commands or SNMP Commands
Note Some of the tasks in this section include examples of the SNMP CLI syntax used to set configuration
parameters on the router and to read values from MIB objects on the router. These SNMP CLI syntax
examples are taken from a Linux workstation using public-domain SNMP tools. The SNMP CLI syntax for
your workstation might be different. Refer to the documentation that was provided with your SNMP tools
for the correct syntax for your network management workstation.
Configuring SNMP Support on the Networking Device, page 218

Configuring Parameters for the NetFlow Main Cache, page 219
Configuring Parameters for the NetFlow Main Cache, page 221
Identifying the Interface Number to Use for Enabling NetFlow with SNMP, page 221
Configuring NetFlow on a Cisco 6500 Series Switch, page 222
Configuring NetFlow on a Cisco 6500 Series Switch, page 224
Configuring NetFlow on Cisco Routers, page 225
Configuring NetFlow on Cisco Routers, page 227

217
Configuring SNMP Support on the Networking Device
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers, page 227

Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers, page 229
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria, page 230
Verifying the NetFlow Top Talkers Configuration, page 235
Verifying the NetFlow Top Talkers Configuration, page 236
Configuring SNMP Support on the Networking Device

If you want to configure the NetFlow Top Talkers feature using the Cisco IOS CLI, you do not have to
perform this task.
If you want to configure the NetFlow Top Talkers feature using the NetFlow MIB and SNMP, you must
perform this task.
Before you can use SNMP commands to configure the Top Talkers feature you must configure SNMP
support on your networking device. To enable SNMP support on the networking device perform the steps
in this task.
Note The SNMP community read-only (RO) string for the examples is public. The SNMP community read-write
(RW) string for the examples is private. You should use more complex strings for these values in your
configurations.
Note For more information on configuring SNMP support on your networking device, refer to the "Configuring
SNMP Support" chapter of the Cisco IOS Configuration Fundamentals and Network Management
Configuration Guide .
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. snmp-server community string ro
4. snmp-server community string rw
5. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable

218
Configuring Parameters for the NetFlow Main Cache

Example:
Step 3 snmp-server community string ro (Required) Sets up the community access string to permit access to SNMP.
Example:
community public ro The ro keyword specifies read-only access. SNMP management stations
using this string can retrieve MIB objects.
Step 4 snmp-server community string rw (Required) Sets up the community access string to permit access to SNMP.
Example:
community private rw The rw keyword specifies read-write access. SNMP management stations
using this string can retrieve and modify MIB objects.
Note The string argument must be different from the read-only string argument
specified in the preceding step (Step 3).
mode.
Example:
Router(config)# end

This optional task describes the procedure for modifying the parameters for the NetFlow main cache.
modify the parameters for the NetFlow main cache.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
6. end

219
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using Cisco IOS CLI Commands or SNMP Commands
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 ip flow-cache entries number (Optional) Specifies the maximum number of entries to be captured for the
main flow cache.
The range for the number argument is from 1024 to 524288 entries.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-cache
entries 4000
Step 4 ip flow-cache timeout active minutes (Optional) Configures operational parameters for the main cache.
The timeout keyword dissolves the session in the cache.
Example: The active minutes keyword-argument pair is the number of minutes
that an entry is active. The range is from 1 to 60 minutes. The default is
Router(config)# ip flow-cache 30 minutes.
timeout active 30
Step 5 ip flow-cache timeout inactive seconds (Optional) Configures operational parameters for the main cache.
The timeout keyword dissolves the session in the main cache.
Example: The inactive secondskeyword-argument pair is the number of seconds
that an inactive entry will stay in the main cache before it times out. The
Router(config)# ip flow-cache range is from 10 to 600 seconds. The default is 15 seconds.
EXEC mode.
Example:
Router(config)# end

220

SUMMARY STEPS
1. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfCICacheEntries.type unsigned number

2. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfCIActiveTimeOut.type unsigned number
3. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] ccnfCIInactiveTimeOut.type unsigned
number
DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Optional) Defines the maximum number of entries to be captured for
hostname] cnfCICacheEntries.type unsigned the main flow cache.
number
Example: The value for the number argument in cnfCICacheEntries.type
number is the maximum number of cache entries.
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all - The range for the number argument is from 1024 to 524288 entries.
v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfCICacheEntries.0
unsigned 4000
Step 2 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Optional) Specifies the number of seconds that an active flow remains
hostname] cnfCIActiveTimeOut.type in the main cache before it times out.
unsigned number
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all - remains in the cache before it times out.
v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfCIActiveTimeOut.0
unsigned 60 The range for the number argument is from 1 to 60 minutes. The
Step 3 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Optional) Specifies the number of seconds that an inactive flow
hostname] ccnfCIInactiveTimeOut.type remains in the main cache before it times out.
unsigned number
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all - remains in the main cache before it times out.
v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfCIInactiveTimeOut.0
unsigned 30 The range for the number argument is from 10 to 600 seconds. The
default is 15 seconds.
Identifying the Interface Number to Use for Enabling NetFlow with SNMP
If you want to configure the NetFlow Top Talkers feature using the Cisco IOS CLI, you do not have to
perform this task.

221
Configuring NetFlow on a Cisco 6500 Series Switch
If you want to configure the NetFlow Top Talkers feature using the NetFlow MIB and SNMP, you must
perform this task.
Before you can use SNMP to enable NetFlow on an interface, you must identify the SNMP interface
number on the router. To identify the interface number for the interface on which you want to enable
NetFlow, perform the steps in this required task.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
2. show snmp mib ifmib ifindex type number
3. Repeat Step 2 to identify the SNMP interface number for any other interfaces on which you plan to
enable NetFlow.
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Enters privileged EXEC mode. Enter the password if prompted.
Example:
Router> enable
Step 2 show snmp mib ifmib ifindex type number
Displays the SNMP interface number for the interface specified.
Example:
Router# show snmp mib ifmib ifindex GigabitEthernet6/2

Ethernet0/0: Ifindex = 60
Step 3 Repeat Step 2 to identify the SNMP interface number for any other interfaces on which you plan to enable NetFlow.

To enable NetFlow on the switch, perform the steps in this required task using either the CLI commands or
the SNMP commands.
Note This task provides the minimum information required to configure NetFlow on your Cisco 6500 series
switch. See the Catalyst 6500 Series Cisco IOS Software Configuration Guide, for more information of
configuring NetFlow on your switch.

222
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. mls flow {ip | ipv6} {destination | destination-source | full | interface-destination-source | interface-
full | source}
6. exit
8. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 mls flow {ip | ipv6} {destination | destination-source | full | Specifies the NetFlow flow mask for IPv4 traffic.
interface-destination-source | interface-full | source}
Example:
Router(config)# mls flow ip interface-full
Step 4 interface type number (Required) Specifies the interface on which you want to
enable NetFlow and enters interface configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config)# interface GigabitEthernet6/2

223

ingress --Captures traffic that is being received by
the interface
Example:
egress --Captures traffic that is being transmitted by
Router(config-if)# ip flow ingress the interface.
Example:
Example:
and/or
Example:
Step 6 exit (Optional) Exits interface configuration mode and

returns to global configuration mode.
Use this command only if you want to enable
Example:
NetFlow on another interface.

interfaces.
Step 8 end (Required) Exits the current configuration mode and
returns to privileged EXEC mode.
Example:

SUMMARY STEPS
1. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cseFlowIPFlowMask integer [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |

6]
[0 | 1 | 2 | 3]

224
Configuring NetFlow on Cisco Routers
DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] Specifies the NetFlow flow mask for IPv4 traffic.
cseFlowIPFlowMask integer [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6]
1--destination-only
2--source-destination
Example: 3--full-flow
4--source-only
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62
cnfCINetflowEnable.60 integer 1 5--interface-source-destination
6--interface-full
cnfCINetflowEnable.interface-number integer [0 | 1 | 2 | 3]
The value for the interface-number argument is
found by entering the router CLI command
show snmp mib ifmib ifindex on the router in
Example:
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 The values for the direction argument are:
cnfCINetflowEnable.60 integer 1
0--Disable NetFlow

To enable NetFlow on the router, perform the steps in this required task using either the CLI commands or
the SNMP commands .
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
5. exit
7. end

225
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 interface type number (Required) Specifies the interface on which you want to
enable NetFlow and enters interface configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config)# interface GigabitEthernet6/2

ingress --Captures traffic that is being received by the
interface
Example:
egress --Captures traffic that is being transmitted by the
Router(config-if)# ip flow ingress interface.
Example:
Example:
and/or
Example:
Step 5 exit (Optional) Exits interface configuration mode and returns to

global configuration mode.
Use this command only if you want to enable NetFlow
Example:
on another interface.

interfaces.

226

Step 7 end (Required) Exits the current configuration mode and returns
to privileged EXEC mode.
Example:

SUMMARY STEPS

[0 | 1 | 2 | 3]
DETAILED STEPS

cnfCINetflowEnable.interface-number integer [0 | 1 | 2 | 3]
The value for the interface-number argument is
found by entering the router CLI command show
snmp mib ifmib ifindex on the router in privileged
Example:
EXEC mode.
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c The values for the direction argument are:
10.4.9.62 cnfCINetflowEnable.60 integer 1
0--Disable NetFlow
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers

This task describes the procedure for configuring the NetFlow Top Talkers feature. Perform the steps in
this required task using either the router CLI commands or the SNMP commands to configure the NetFlow
Top Talkers feature on the router.

227
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-top-talkers
4. top number
5. sort-by [bytes | packets
6. cache-timeout milliseconds
7. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 ip flow-top-talkers (Required) Enters NetFlow Top Talkers configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-top-
talkers
Step 4 top number (Required) Specifies the maximum number of top talkers that will be retrieved by
a NetFlow top talkers query.
Example:
Router(config-flow-top-
talkers)# top 50
Step 5 sort-by [bytes | packets (Required) Specifies the sort criterion for the top talkers.
The top talkers can be sorted either by the total number of packets of each top
talker or the total number of bytes of each top talker.
Example:
talkers)# sort-by packets

228

Step 6 cache-timeout milliseconds (Optional) Specifies the amount of time that the list of top talkers is retained.
Reentering the top, sort-by, or cache-timeout command resets the timeout
period, and the list of top talkers is recalculated the next time they are
Example:
requested.
Router(config-flow-top- The list of top talkers is lost when the timeout period expires. You should
talkers)# cache-timeout 30000 configure a timeout period for at least as long as it takes the network
management system (NMS) to retrieve all the required NetFlow top talkers.
If this timeout value is too large, the list of top talkers might not be updated
quickly enough to display the latest top talkers. If a request to display the top
talkers is made more than once during the timeout period, the same results
will be displayed for each request. To ensure that the latest information is
displayed while conserving CPU time, configure a large value for the timeout
period and change the parameters of the cache-timeout, top, or sort-by
command when a new list of top talkers is required.
The range for the number argument is from 1 to 3,600,000 milliseconds. The
default is 5000 (5 seconds).
mode.
Example:
talkers)# end

SUMMARY STEPS
1. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfTopFlowsTopN.0 unsigned number

2. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfTopFlowsSortBy.0 integer [1 | 2 | 3]
3. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfTopFlowsCacheTimeout.0 unsigned
milliseconds

229
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria
DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Required) Specifies the maximum number of top talkers that will be
hostname] cnfTopFlowsTopN.0 unsigned retrieved by a NetFlow top talkers query.
number
The value for the number argument in cnfTopFlowsTopN.0 number
is the maximum number of top talkers that will be retrieved by a
NetFlow top talkers query.
Example:
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all
-v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsTopN.0
unsigned 50
Step 2 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Required) Specifies the sort criteria for the top talkers.
hostname] cnfTopFlowsSortBy.0 integer [1 |
Values for sort-optionin cnfTopFlowsSortBy.0 [1 | 2 | 3] are
2 | 3]
1--No sorting will be performed and that the NetFlow MIB and
Top Talkers feature will be disabled.
Example: 2--Sorting will be performed by the total number of packets of
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all
each top talker.
-v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsSortBy.0 3--Sorting will be performed by the total number of bytes of
integer 2 each top talker.
Step 3 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Optional) Specifies the amount of time that the list of top talkers is
hostname] cnfTopFlowsCacheTimeout.0 retained.
unsigned milliseconds
Reentering the top, sort-by, or cache-timeout command resets the
timeout period, and the list of top talkers is recalculated the next
time they are requested.
Example:
The list of top talkers will be lost when the timeout period expires.
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all You should configure a timeout period for at least as long as it takes
-v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsCacheTimeout. the network management system (NMS) to retrieve all the required
0 unsigned 30000
NetFlow top talkers.
If this timeout value is too large, the list of top talkers might not be
updated quickly enough to display the latest top talkers. If a request
to display the top talkers is made more than once during the timeout
period, the same results will be displayed for each request. To
ensure that the latest information is displayed while conserving CPU
time, configure a large value for the timeout period and change the
parameters of the cache-timeout, top, or sort-by command when a
new list of top talkers is required.
The range for the number argument is from 1 to 3,600,000
milliseconds. The default is 5000 (5 seconds).
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria

You can limit the traffic that is displayed by the NetFlow Top Talkers feature by configuring match
criteria. The match criteria are applied to data in the main cache. The data in the main cache that meets the
match criteria is displayed when you enter the show ip flow top-talkers command. To limit the traffic that
is displayed by the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers feature, perform the steps in this optional task.

230
NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Specified by CLI Commands
Before configuring NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers match criteria, you should understand the following:
NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Specified by CLI Commands, page 231
Configuring Source IP Address Top Talkers Match Criteria, page 233
Configuring Source IP Address Top Talkers Match Criteria, page 234
NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Specified by CLI Commands

You can use the match CLI command to specify match criteria to restrict the display of top talkers for the
NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers feature. If you do not provide matching criteria, all top talkers are
displayed.
Note When configuring a matching source, destination or nexthop address, both the address and a mask must be
configured. The configuration will remain unchanged until both have been specified.
Note cnfTopFlowsMatchSampler matches flows from a named flow sampler. cnfTopFlowsMatchClass

matches flows from a named class map.
Note When you are configuring the Top Talkers feature to match bytes and packets, the values that are matched
are the total number of bytes and packets in the flow so far. For example, it is possible to match flows
containing a specific number of packets, or flows with more or less than a set number of bytes.
For more information on using the match command, see the Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference.
NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Specified by SNMP Commands, page 231
NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Specified by SNMP Commands

If you are using SNMP commands to configure NetFlow Top Talkers, see the table below for router CLI
commands and equivalent SNMP commands.
Note Some of the SNMP match criteria options, such as the cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddress option, require that
you enter more than one SNMP commands on the same line. For example, snmpset -c private -m all -v2c
10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressType.0 integer 1 cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddress.0 decimal
172.16.10.0 cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressMask.0 unsigned 24.

231
NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Specified by SNMP Commands
Table 39 Router CLI Commands and Equivalent SNMP Commands
Router CLI Command SNMP Command

match source address [ip-address] [mask | /nn] cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddress decimal ip-
address
cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressType integer type
7
cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressMask unsigned
mask
match destination address [ip-address][mask cnfTopFlowsMatchDstAddress decimal ip-

| /nn] address
cnfTopFlowsMatchDstAddressType integer
type1
cnfTopFlowsMatchDstAddressMask unsigned
mask
match nexthop address [ip-address][mask | /nn] cnfTopFlowsMatchNhAddress decimal ip-

address
cnfTopFlowsMatchNhAddressType integer
type1
cnfTopFlowsMatchNhAddressMask unsigned
mask
match source port min port cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcPortLo integer port
match source port max port cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcPortHi integer port
match destination port min port cnfTopFlowsMatchDstPortLo integer port
match destination port max port cnfTopFlowsMatchDstPortHi integer port
match source as as-number cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAS integer as-number
match destination as as-number cnfTopFlowsMatchDstAS integer as-number
match input-interface interface cnfTopFlowsMatchInputIf integer interface
match output-interface interface cnfTopFlowsMatchOutputIf integer interface
match tos [tos-value | dscp dscp-value | cnfTopFlowsMatchTOSByte integer tos-value 8

precedence precedence-value]
match protocol [protocol-number | tcp | udp] cnfTopFlowsMatchProtocol integer protocol-

number
7 The only IP version type that is currently supported is IPv4 (type 1).
8 tos-value is 6 bits for DSCP, 3 bits for precedence, and 8 bits (one byte) for ToS.

232
Configuring Source IP Address Top Talkers Match Criteria
Router CLI Command SNMP Command

match flow-sampler flow-sampler-name cnfTopFlowsMatchSampler string flow-sampler-
name
match class-map class cnfTopFlowsMatchClass string class
match packet-range min minimum-range cnfTopFlowsMatchMinPackets unsigned

minimum-range
match packet-range max maximum-range cnfTopFlowsMatchMaxPackets unsigned

maximum-range
match byte-range min minimum-range cnfTopFlowsMatchMinBytes unsigned minimum-

range
match byte-range max maximum-range cnfTopFlowsMatchMaxPackets unsigned

maximum-range

add source IP address match criteria to the Top Talkers configuration.
For information on configuring other Top Talkers match criteria see the following resources:
Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference.
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB at the following URL: http://www.cisco.com/go/mibs/ . Select SNMP
Object Locator. Then select View & Download MIBs.
You must configure NetFlow Top Talkers before you perform this task.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
4. match source address {ip-address/nn | ip-address mask}
5. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable

233

Example:
Step 3 ip flow-top-talkers (Required) Enters NetFlow Top Talkers configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-top-talkers
Step 4 match source address {ip-address/nn | ip- (Required) Specifies a match criterion.
address mask}
The source address keyword specifies that the match criterion is based
on the source IP address.
Example: The ip-addressargument is the IP address of the source, destination, or
next-hop address to be matched.
Router(config-flow-top-talkers)# The mask argument is the address mask, in dotted decimal format.
match source address
172.16.10.0 The /nn argument is the address mask as entered in CIDR format. The
/24 match source address 172.16.10.0/24 is equivalent to the match
source address 172.16.10.0 255.255.255.0 command.
Note You must configure at least one of the possible match criteria before
matching can be used to limit the traffic that is displayed by the
NetFlow Top Talkers feature. Additional match criteria are optional.
Note For a full list of the matching criteria that you can select, refer to
NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Specified by CLI Commands,
page 231.
EXEC mode.
Example:
Router(config-flow-top-talkers)# end
SUMMARY STEPS
1. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressType.0 integer

1 cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddress.0 decimal ip-address cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressMask.0
unsigned mask

234
Verifying the NetFlow Top Talkers Configuration
DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | (Required) Specifies a match criterion.
hostname] cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressType.
The IP address type of 1 in the
0 integer 1 cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddress.0
cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressType.0 integer 1 command
decimal ip-address
specifies an IP version 4 (IPv4) address for the IP address type.
cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressMask.0
IPv4 is currently the only IP version that is supported.
unsigned mask
The ip-address argument in cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddress.0
decimal ip-address is the IPv4 source IP address to match in the
Example: traffic that is being analyzed.
The mask argument in cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressMask.0
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all - unsigned mask is the number of bits in the mask for the IPv4
v2c 10.4.9.62
cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressType.0 integer source IP address to match in the traffic that is being analyzed.
1 cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddress.0 decimal
172.16.10.0 Note You must configure at least one of the possible match criteria
cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressMask.0 unsigned before matching can be used to limit the traffic that is displayed
24
by the Top talkers feature. Additional match criteria are
optional.
Note To remove the cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddress match
criterion from the configuration, specify an IP address type of 0
(unknown) with the cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressType.0
integer 0 command.
Note For a list of router CLI commands and their corresponding
SNMP commands, see Configuring Source IP Address Top
Talkers Match Criteria, page 234.

To verify the NetFlow Top Talkers configuration, perform the steps in this optional task using either the
router CLI command or the SNMP commands.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip flow top-talkers
DETAILED STEPS
show ip flow top-talkers

Use this command to verify that the NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers feature is operational. For example:
Example:
Router# show ip flow top-talkers

SrcIf SrcIPaddress DstIf DstIPaddress Pr SrcP DstP Bytes
Et3/0 10.1.1.3 Local 10.1.1.2 01 0000 0000 4800
Et3/0 10.1.1.4 Local 10.1.1.2 01 0000 0000 4800

235
Et3/0 10.1.1.5 Local 10.1.1.2 01 0000 0000 800

3 of 10 top talkers shown. 3 flows processed.

In this example, even though a maximum of ten top talkers is configured by the top command, only three
top talkers were transmitting data in the network. Therefore, three top talkers are shown, and the "3 flows
processed" message is displayed in the output. If you expect more top talkers to be displayed than are being
shown, this condition may possibly be the result of matching criteria, specified by the match command,
that are overly restrictive.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfTopFlowsGenerate.0 integer 1

2. snmpget -c public -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfTopFlowsReportAvailable
3. snmpwalk -c public -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfTopFlowsTable
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 snmpset -c private -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfTopFlowsGenerate.0 integer 1

Use this command to initiate a generation of the top talkers statistics:
Example:
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsGenerate.0 integer 1

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsGenerate.0 = INTEGER: true(1)
Step 2 snmpget -c public -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfTopFlowsReportAvailable
Use this command to verify that the top talkers statistics are available:
Example:
workstation% snmpwalk -c public -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsReportAvailable

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsReportAvailable.0 = INTEGER: true(1)
Step 3 snmpwalk -c public -m all -v2c [ip-address | hostname] cnfTopFlowsTable
Use this command to display the NetFlow top talkers:
Example:
workstation% snmpwalk -c public -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsTable

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsSrcAddressType.1 = INTEGER: ipv4(1)
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsSrcAddress.1 = Hex-STRING: 0A 04 09 08
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsSrcAddressMask.1 = Gauge32: 0
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsDstAddressType.1 = INTEGER: ipv4(1)
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsDstAddress.1 = Hex-STRING: 0A 04 09 A7
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsDstAddressMask.1 = Gauge32: 0
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsNhAddressType.1 = INTEGER: ipv4(1)
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsNhAddress.1 = Hex-STRING: 00 00 00 00
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsSrcPort.1 = Gauge32: 32773

236
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Using SNMP Commands Example
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Top Talkers
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsDstPort.1 = Gauge32: 161

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsSrcAS.1 = Gauge32: 0
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsDstAS.1 = Gauge32: 0
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsInputIfIndex.1 = INTEGER: 1
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsOutputIfIndex.1 = INTEGER: 0
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsFirstSwitched.1 = Timeticks: (12073160) 1 day, 9:32:11.60
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsLastSwitched.1 = Timeticks: (12073160) 1 day, 9:32:11.60
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsTOS.1 = Gauge32: 0
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsProtocol.1 = Gauge32: 17
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsTCPFlags.1 = Gauge32: 16
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsSamplerID.1 = Gauge32: 0
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsClassID.1 = Gauge32: 0
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsFlags.1 = Gauge32: 0
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsBytes.1 = Gauge32: 75
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsPackets.1 = Gauge32: 1
Tip You must convert the source and destination IP addresses from hexadecimal to dotted decimal format used in the
display output before you can correlate them to source and destination hosts on your network. For example, in the
display output above: 0A 04 09 02 = 10.4.9.2 and 0A 04 09 AF = 10.4.9.175.
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Top Talkers

Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Using SNMP Commands Example, page 237
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Using SNMP Commands Example, page 238
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Using SNMP Commands Example

The following output from the network management workstation shows the command and the response for
enabling NetFlow on interface GigabitEthernet6/2 (ifindex number 60):
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfCINetflowEnable.60 integer 1

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfCINetflowEnable.60 = INTEGER: interfaceDirIngress(1)
specifying 5 as the maximum number of top talkers that will be retrieved by a NetFlow top talkers query:
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsTopN.0 unsigned 5

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsTopN.0 = Gauge32: 5
specifying the sort criteria for the top talkers:
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsSortBy.0 integer 2

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsSortBy.0 = INTEGER: byPackets(2)
specifying the amount of time that the list of top talkers is retained:
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsCacheTimeout.0 unsigned

2000
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsCacheTimeout.0 = Gauge32: 2000 milliseconds

237
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Using SNMP Commands Example
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Using SNMP Commands

Example
The following output from the network management workstation shows the snmpset command and the
response for specifying the following NetFlow Top Talkers match criteria:
Source IP address-172.16.23.0
Source IP address mask-255.255.255.0 (/24)
IP address type-IPv4
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddress.0

decimal 172.16.23.0 cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressMask.0 unsigned 24
cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressType.0 integer 1
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddress.0 = Hex-STRING: AC 10 17 00
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressMask.0 = Gauge32: 24
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsMatchSrcAddressType.0 = INTEGER: ipv4(1)
The following output from the network management workstation shows the snmpset command and the
response for specifying the class-map my-class-map as aNetFlow Top Talkers match criterion:
workstation% snmpset -c private -m all -v2c 10.4.9.62 cnfTopFlowsMatchClass.0 s my-class-

map
CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB::cnfTopFlowsMatchClass.0 = STRING: my-class-map.
Related Documents

NetFlow

238

With SCTP
Standards
Standards Title
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

CISCO-NETFLOW-MIB To locate and download MIBs for selected
Cisco MIB Locator found at the following URL
(requires CCO login account):
RFCs
RFCs Title

239
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using the Cisco IOS CLI or SNMP Commands
Description Link
content.
Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers

using the Cisco IOS CLI or SNMP Commands
feature.
Table 40 Feature Information for Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using the Cisco IOS CLI or SNMP
Commands

NetFlow MIB 12.3(7)T, 12.2(25)S 12.2(27)SBC The NetFlow MIB feature
provides MIB objects to allow
users to monitor NetFlow cache
information, the current NetFlow
configuration, and statistics.
flow-cache timeout.

240

NetFlow MIB and Top Talkers 12.3(11)T, 12.2(25)S The NetFlow MIB feature that
12.2(27)SBC 12.2(33)SXH was originally released in Cisco
IOS Release12.3(7)T was
modified in Cisco IOS Release
12.3(11)T to support the new
NetFlow Top Talkers feature. The
modifications to the NetFlow
MIB and the new Top Talkers
feature were released under the
feature name NetFlow MIB and
Top Talkers.
The NetFlow MIB and Top
Talkers feature uses NetFlow
functionality to obtain
information regarding heaviest
traffic patterns and most-used
applications (top talkers) in the
network. The NetFlow MIB
component of the NetFlow MIB
and Top Talkers feature enables
you to configure top talkers and
view the top talker statistics using
SNMP.
introduced by this feature: cache-
timeout, ip flow-top-talkers,
match, show ip flow top-talkers,
sort-by, and top.

241
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers Match Criteria Using SNMP Commands Example

242
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring
Exports
The NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature improves your ability to detect and analyze
network threats such as denial of service (DoS) attacks by increasing the number of fields from which
NetFlow can capture relevant data.
NetFlow is a Cisco IOS technology that provides statistics on packets flowing through a router. NetFlow
is the standard for acquiring IP operational data from IP networks. NetFlow provides network and security
monitoring, network planning, traffic analysis, and IP accounting.

Prerequisites for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 243
Information About NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 244
How to Configure NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 256
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 263
Feature Information for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 278
Glossary, page 279

Prerequisites for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring

Exports
Before you configure NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, you should understand
NetFlow accounting and know how to configure your router to capture IP traffic accounting statistics
using NetFlow. See the Cisco IOS NetFlow Overview and Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data
Export modules for more details.

243
Information About NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
NetFlow and Cisco Express Forwarding (formerly known as CEF), distributed Cisco Express
Forwarding (formerly known as dCEF), or fast switching must be configured on your system.
If you want to export the data captured with the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring feature, you
must configure NetFlow to use the NetFlow Version 9 data export format.
Information About NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring

Exports
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring, page 244
NBAR Data Export, page 256

The Layer 2 and Layer 3 fields supported by the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature
increase the amount of information that can be obtained by NetFlow about the traffic in your network. You
can use the network traffic information for applications such as traffic engineering and usage-based billing.
Layer 3 fields captured by the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature improve the
capabilities of NetFlow for identifying DoS attacks. Layer 2 IP header fields help identify the path that the
DoS attack is taking through the network.
Layer 2 and Layer 3 fields are not key fields. They provide additional information about the traffic in an
existing flow. Changes in the values of NetFlow key fields, such as the source IP address, from one packet
to the next packet results in the creation of a new flow. For example, if the first packet captured by
NetFlow has a source IP address of 10.34.0.2 and the second packet captured has a source IP address of
172.16.213.65, NetFlow will create two separate flows.
Most DoS attacks consist of an attacker sending the same type of IP datagram repeatedly, in an attempt to
overwhelm target systems. In such cases, the incoming traffic often has similar characteristics, such as the
same values in each datagram for one or more fields that the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring
Exports feature can capture.
The originator of DoS attacks cannot be easily identified because the IP source address of the device
sending the traffic is usually forged. However, you can easily trace the traffic back through the network to
the router on which it is arriving by using the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature to
capture the MAC address and VLAN-ID fields. If the router on which traffic is arriving supports NetFlow,

244
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
Information About NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
you can configure the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature on it to identify the
interface on which the traffic is arriving. The figure below shows an example of an attack in progress.
Figure 26 DoS Attack Arriving over the Internet
Note You can analyze the data captured by NetFlow directly from the router by using the show ip cache verbose
flow command or by the Cisco Network Services (CNS) NetFlow Collector Engine.
Once you have concluded that a DoS attack is taking place by analyzing the Layer 3 fields in the NetFlow
flows, you can analyze the Layer 2 fields in the flows to discover the path that the DoS attack is taking
through the network.
An analysis of the data captured by the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature, for the
scenario shown in the above figure, indicates that the DoS attack is arriving on Router C, because the
upstream MAC address is from the interface that connects Router C to Switch A. It is also evident that
there are no routers between the target host (the e-mail server) and the NetFlow router, because the
destination MAC address of the DoS traffic that the NetFlow router is forwarding to the e-mail server is the
MAC address of the e-mail server.
You can learn the MAC address that Host C is using to send traffic to Router C by configuring the NetFlow
Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature on Router C. The source MAC address will be from Host
C. The destination MAC address will be for the interface on the NetFlow router.
Once you know the MAC address that Host C is using and the interface on Router C on which Host Cs
DoS attack is arriving, you can mitigate the attack by reconfiguring Router C to block Host Cs traffic. If
Host C is on a dedicated interface, you can disable the interface. If Host C is using an interface that carries
traffic from other users, you must configure your firewall to block Host Cs traffic, but still allow the traffic
from the other users to flow through Router C.
Layer 2 Information Capture Using NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 246

245
Layer 2 Information Capture Using NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
The NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature can capture the values of the MAC address
and VLAN ID fields from flows. The two supported VLAN types are 802.1q and the Cisco Inter-Switch
Link (ISL) protocol.
Layer 2 MAC Address Fields, page 246
Layer 2 VLAN ID Fields, page 247
Layer 2 MAC Address Fields

The Layer 2 fields for which the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature captures the
values are as follows:
The source MAC address field from frames that are received by the NetFlow router.
The destination MAC address field from frames that are transmitted by the NetFlow router.
The VLAN ID field from frames that are received by the NetFlow router.
The VLAN ID field from frames that are transmitted by the NetFlow router.
Figure 2 shows the Ethernet Type II and Ethernet 802.3 frame formats. The destination address field and
the source address field in the frame formats are the MAC address values that are captured by NetFlow.
Figure 27 Ethernet Type II and 802.3 Frame Formats
Table 1 explains the fields for the Ethernet frame formats.
Table 41 Ethernet Type II and 802.3 Frame Fields
Field Description
Preamble The entry in the Preamble field is an alternating pattern of 0s and 1s that
communicates to receiving stations about an incoming frame. It also
provides a means for the receiving stations to synchronize their clocks with
the incoming bit stream.

246
Layer 2 VLAN ID Fields
Field Description
SOF (Start of frame) The SOF field holds an alternating pattern of 0s and 1s, ending with two
consecutive 1s, indicating that the next bit is the first bit of the first byte of
the destination MAC address.
Destination Address The 48-bit destination address identifies which station on the LAN should
receive the frame. The first two bits of the destination MAC address are
reserved for the following special functions:
The first bit in the destination address field indicates whether the
address is an individual address (0) or a group address (1).
The second bit indicates whether the destination address is globally
administered (0) or locally administered (1).
The remaining 46 bits form a uniquely assigned value that identifies a single
station, a defined group of stations, or all stations on the network.
Source Address The 48-bit source address identifies which station transmitted the frame.
The source address is always an individual address, and the leftmost bit in
the Source Address field is always 0.
Type TypeIn an Ethernet Type II frame, a part of the frame is used for the Type
field. The Type field is used to identify the next layer protocol in the frame.
or
LengthIn an 802.3 Ethernet frame, a part of the frame is used for the
Length
Length field. The Length field is used to indicate the length of the Ethernet
frame. The value can be from 46 to 1500 bytes.
Data Ethernet Type II46 to 1500 bytes of data

or or
802.2 header and data 802.3/802.28 bytes of header and 38 to 1492 bytes of data.
FCS (Frame Check This field contains a 32-bit cyclic redundancy check (CRC) value, which is
Sequence) created by the sending station and is recalculated by the receiving station, to
check for damaged frames. The FCS is generated for the destination
address, source address, Type, and Data fields of the frame. The FCS does
not include the data portion of the frame.

NetFlow can capture the value in the VLAN ID field for 802.1q tagged VLANs and Cisco ISL
encapsulated VLANs. This section describes the two types of VLANs, 802.1q and ISL.
Note ISL and 802.1q are commonly called VLAN encapsulation protocols.

247
Understanding 802.1q VLANs

Devices that use 802.1q insert a four-byte tag into the original frame before it is transmitted. Figure 3
shows the format of an 802.1q tagged Ethernet frame.
Figure 28 802.1q Tagged Ethernet Type II or 802.3 Frame
Table 2 describes the fields for 802.1q VLANs.
Table 42 802.1q VLAN Encapsulation Fields
Field Description
Destination Address The 48-bit destination address identifies which stations on the LAN should
The remaining 46 bits form a uniquely assigned value that identifies a
single station, a defined group of stations, or all stations on the network.

248
Field Description
Type TypeIn an Ethernet Type II frame, a part of the frame is used for the
Type field. The Type field is used to identify the next layer protocol in the
or
frame.
Length

or or
Sequence) created by the sending station and is recalculated by the receiving station,
to check for damaged frames. The FCS is generated for the destination
Tag Protocol ID (TPID) This 16-bit field is set to a value of 0x8100 to identify the frame as an IEEE
802.1q tagged frame.
Priority This 3-bit field refers to the 802.1p priority. It is also known as user
priority. It indicates the frame priority level used for prioritizing traffic and
can represent levels 07.
Tag Control Information This 2-byte Tag Control Information field consists of the following two
subfields:
Canonical Format Indentifier (CFI)If the value of this 1-bit field is
1, the MAC address is in noncanonical format. If the value of this field
is 0, the MAC address is in canonical format.
VLAN IDThis 12-bit field uniquely identifies the VLAN to which
the frame belongs. It can have a value from 0 to 4095.
Cisco ISL VLANs

ISL is a Cisco-proprietary protocol for encapsulating frames on a VLAN trunk. Devices that use ISL add an
ISL header to the frame. This process is known as VLAN encapsulation. 802.1Q is the IEEE standard for
tagging frames on a VLAN trunk. Figure 4 shows the format of a Cisco ISL-encapsulated Ethernet frame.
Figure 29 Cisco ISL Tagged Ethernet Frame

249
Table 43 ISL VLAN Encapsulation
Field Description
DA (destination address) This 40-bit field is a multicast address and is set at
0n01-00-0c-00-00 or 0n03-00-0c-00-00. The
receiving host determines that the frame is
encapsulated in ISL by reading the 40-bit DA field
and matching it with one of the two ISL multicast
addresses.
TYPE This 4-bit field indicates the type of frame that is

encapsulated and to indicate alternative
encapsulations.
TYPE codes:
0000Ethernet
0001Token Ring
0010FDDI
0011ATM
USER This 4-bit field is used to extend the meaning of the

Frame TYPE field. The default USER field value is
0000. For Ethernet frames, the USER field bits 0
and 1 indicate the priority of the packet as it passes
through the switch. Whenever traffic can be
handled more quickly, the packets with this bit set
should take advantage of the quicker path.
However, such paths are not required.
USER codes:
xx00Normal priority
xx01Priority 1
xx10Priority 2
xx11Highest priority
SA This 48-bit field is the source address field of the

ISL packet. It should be set to the 802.3 MAC
address of the switch port transmitting the frame.
The receiving device can ignore the SA field of the
frame.
LEN This 16-bit value field stores the actual packet size
of the original packet. The LEN field represents the
length of the packet in bytes, excluding the DA,
TYPE, USER, SA, LEN, and FCS fields. The total
length of the excluded fields is 18 bytes, so the
LEN field represents the total length minus 18
bytes.

250
Field Description
AAAA03(SNAP) The AAAA03 Subnetwork Access Protocol
(SNAP) field is a 24-bit constant value of
0xAAAA03.
HSA This 24-bit field represents the upper three bytes

(the manufacturers ID portion) of the SA field. It
must contain the value 0x00-00-0C.
VLAN This 15-bit field is the virtual LAN ID of the

packet. This value is used to mark frames on
different VLANs.
BPDU The bit in the bridge protocol data unit (BPDU)

field is set for all BPDU packets that are
encapsulated by the ISL frame. The BPDUs are
used by the spanning tree algorithm to learn
information about the topology of the network. This
bit is also set for Cisco Discovery Protocol and
VLAN Trunk Protocol (VTP) frames that are
encapsulated.
INDEX This 16-bit field indicates the port index of the

source of the packet as it exits the switch. It is used
for diagnostic purposes only, and may be set to any
value by other devices. It is ignored in received
packets.
RES This 16-bit field is used when Token Ring or FDDI

packets are encapsulated with an ISL frame.
Encapsulated FRAME This field contains the encapsulated Layer 2 frame.
FCS The FCS field consists of 4 bytes. It includes a 32-

bit CRC value, which is created by the sending
station and is recalculated by the receiving station,
to check for damaged frames. The FCS covers the
DA, SA, Length/Type, and Data fields. When an
ISL header is attached to a Layer 2 frame, a new
FCS is calculated over the entire ISL packet and
added to the end of the frame.
Note The addition of the new FCS does not alter
the original FCS that is contained within the
encapsulated frame.
The five fields that the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature captures from Layer 3 IP
traffic in a flow are the following:
Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) type and code
ID field

251
Fragment offset
Packet length field
Time-to-live field
Figure 5 shows the fields in an IP packet header.
Figure 30 IP Packet Header Fields
Table 4 describes the header fields in Figure 5.
Table 44 IP Packet Header Fields
Field Description
Version The version of the IP protocol. If this field is set to 4, it is an IPv4
datagram. If this field is set to 6, it is an IPv6 datagram.
Note IPv4 and IPv6 headers have different structures.
IHL (Internet Header Length) Internet Header Length is the length of the Internet header in 32-bit
word format and thus points to the beginning of the data.
Note The minimum value for the correct header length is 5.
ToS Type of service (ToS) provides an indication of the abstract parameters

of the quality of service desired. These parameters are to be used to
guide the selection of the actual service parameters when a networking
device transmits a datagram through a particular network.
Total Length Total length is the length of the datagram, measured in octets, including
Internet header and data.

252
Field Description
Identification (ID) The value in the ID field is entered by the sender. All the fragments of
an IP datagram have the same value in the ID field. Subsequent IP
datagrams from the same sender will have different values in the ID
field.
Frequently, a host receives fragmented IP datagrams from several
senders concurrently. Also, frequently a host receives multiple IP
datagrams from the same sender concurrently.
The value in the ID field is used by the destination host to ensure that
the fragments of an IP datagram are assigned to the same packet buffer
during the IP datagram reassembly process. The unique value in the ID
field is used to prevent the receiving host from mixing together IP
datagram fragments of different IP datagrams from the same sender
during the IP datagram reassembly process.
Flags A sequence of three bits is used to set and track IP datagram

fragmentation parameters. The bits are:
001The IP datagram can be fragmented. More fragments of the
current IP datagram are in transit.
000The IP datagram can be fragmented. This is the last fragment
of the current IP datagram.
010The IP datagram cannot be fragmented. This is the entire IP
datagram.
Fragment Offset This field indicates where in the datagram this fragment belongs.
TTL (Time-to-Live) This field indicates the maximum time the datagram is allowed to
remain in the Internet system. If this field contains the value 0, then the
datagram must be destroyed. This field is modified in Internet header
processing. The TTL is measured in units of seconds, but because every
module that processes a datagram must decrease the TTL by at least 1
even if it processes the datagram in less than a second, the TTL must be
thought of only as an upper bound on the time a datagram can exist. The
intention is to discard undeliverable datagrams and bound the maximum
datagram lifetime.
Protocol Indicates the type of transport packet included in the data portion of the
IP datagram. Common values are:
1ICMP
6TCP
17UDP
Header checksum A checksum on the header only. Because some header fields, such as the
TTL field, change every time an IP datagram is forwarded, this value is
recomputed and verified at each point that the Internet header is
processed.
Source IP Address IP address of the sending station.

253
Field Description
Destination IP Address IP address of the destination station.
Options and Padding The options and padding may appear in datagrams. If they do appear,
they must be implemented by all IP modules (host and gateways).
Options and padding are always implemented in any particular
datagram; transmissions are not.
Figure 6 shows the fields in an ICMP datagram.
Figure 31 ICMP Datagram
Table 5 interprets the packet format in the figure seen above. ICMP datagrams are carried in the data area
of an IP datagram, after the IP header.
Table 45 ICMP Packet Format
Type Name Codes

0 Echo reply 0None.
1 Unassigned
2 Unassigned
3 Destination unreachable 0Network unreachable.

1Host unreachable.
2Protocol unreachable.
3Port unreachable.
4Fragmentation needed and don't fragment (DF)
bit set.
5Source route failed.
6Destination network unknown.
7Destination host unknown.
8Source host isolated.
9Communication with the destination network is
administratively prohibited.
10Communication with the destination host is
11Destination network unreachable for ToS.
12Destination host unreachable for ToS.

254
Type Name Codes

4 Source quench 0None.
5 Redirect 0None.
0Redirect datagram for the network.
1Redirect datagram for the host.
2Redirect datagram for the ToS and network.
3Redirect datagram for the ToS and host.
6 Alternate host address 0Alternate address for the host.
7 Unassigned
8 Echo 0None.
9 Router advertisement 0None.
10 Router selection 0None.
11 Time exceeded 0Time to live exceeded in transit.
12 Parameter problem 0Pointer indicates the error.

1Missing a required option.
2Inappropriate length.
13 Timestamp 0None.
14 Timestamp reply 0None.
15 Information request 0None.
16 Information reply 0None.
17 Address mask request 0None.
18 Address mask reply 0None.
19 Reserved (for security)
2029 Reserved (for robustness

experiment)
30 Trace route
31 Datagram conversion error
32 Mobile host redirect
33 IPv6 where-are-you
34 IPv6 I-am-here

255
NBAR Data Export
Benefits of NBAR NetFlow Integration
Type Name Codes

35 Mobile registration request
36 Mobile registration reply
37255 Reserved
NBAR Data Export

Network based application recognition (NBAR) is a classification engine that recognizes and classifies a
wide variety of protocols and applications, including web-based and other difficult-to-classify applications
and protocols that use dynamic TCP/UDP port assignments.
When NBAR recognizes and classifies a protocol or application, the network can be configured to apply
the appropriate application mapping with that protocol.
For a Catalyst 6500 series switch equipped with a Supervisor 32/programmable intelligent services
accelerator (PISA), the NBAR flow can be exported along with NetFlow export records.
The application-aware NetFlow feature integrates NBAR with NetFlow to provide the ability to export
application information collected by NBAR using NetFlow. The application IDs created for the NetFlow
Version 9 attribute export application names along with the standard attributes such as IP address and
TCP/UDP port information. The NetFlow collector collects these flows based on the source IP address and
ID. The source ID refers to the unique identification for flows exported from a particular device.
The NBAR data exported to the NetFlow collector contains application mapping information. Using the
NetFlow Data export options, the table containing the application IDs mapped to their application names is
exported to the NetFlow collector. The mapping table is sent using the ip flow-export template options
nbar command. By default, the mapping information is refreshed every 30 minutes. You can configure the
refresh interval by using the ip flow-export template options timeout-rate command.
NetFlow export uses several aging mechanisms to manage the NetFlow cache. However, the NBAR data
export intervals do not use NetFlow aging parameters.
Benefits of NBAR NetFlow Integration, page 256
Benefits of NBAR NetFlow Integration

NBAR enables network administrators to track a variety of protocols and the amount of traffic generated by
each protocol. NBAR also allows network administrators to organize traffic into classes. These classes can
then be used to provide different levels of service for network traffic, thereby allowing better network
management by providing the appropriate level of network resources for network traffic.
How to Configure NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring

Exports
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 257
Verifying NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 259
Configuring NBAR Support for NetFlow Exports, page 261

256
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
How to Configure NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports

Cisco Express Forwarding (formerly known as CEF), distributed Cisco Express Forwarding (formerly
known as dCEF), or fast switching for IP must be configured on your system before you configure the
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature.
The task in the "Verifying NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 259" section uses the
show ip cache verbose flow command to display the values of the fields; the NetFlow Layer 2 and
Security Monitoring Exports feature is configured to capture the values of these fields. In order to display
the values of the fields, your router must forward the IP traffic that meets the criteria for these fields. For
example, if you configure the ip flow-capture ip-id command, your router must be forwarding IP
datagrams to capture the IP ID values from the IP datagrams in the flow.
Depending on the release that your router supports, you can capture the values of the Layer 3 IP fragment
offset field from the IP headers in your IP traffic using the ip flow-capture fragment-offset command.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-capture fragment-offset
4. ip flow-capture icmp
5. ip flow-capture ip-id
6. ip flow-capture mac-addresses
7. ip flow-capture packet-length
8. ip flow-capture ttl
9. ip flow-capture vlan-id
10. interface type [number | slot / port]
11. Enter one of the following commands:
ip flow ingress
ip flow egress
12. exit
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Device> enable
Example:
Device# configure terminal

257
How to Configure NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports

Step 3 ip flow-capture fragment-offset (Optional) Enables the software to capture the value of the IP
fragment offset field from the first fragmented IP datagram in a
flow.
Example:
Device(config)# ip flow-capture fragment-

offset
Step 4 ip flow-capture icmp (Optional) Enables the software to capture the value of the
ICMP type and code fields from ICMP datagrams in a flow.
Example:
Device(config)# ip flow-capture icmp
Step 5 ip flow-capture ip-id (Optional) Enables the software to capture the value of the IP
ID field from the first IP datagram in a flow.
Example:
Device(config)# ip flow-capture ip-id
Step 6 ip flow-capture mac-addresses (Optional) Enables the software to capture the values of the
source and destination MAC addresses from the traffic in a
flow.
Example:
Device(config)# ip flow-capture mac-addresses
Step 7 ip flow-capture packet-length (Optional) Enables the software to capture the minimum and
maximum values of the packet length field from IP datagrams
in a flow.
Example:
Device(config)# ip flow-capture packet-length
Step 8 ip flow-capture ttl (Optional) Enables the software to capture the minimum and
maximum values of the time-to-live (TTL) field from IP
datagrams in a flow.
Example:
Device(config)# ip flow-capture ttl
Step 9 ip flow-capture vlan-id (Optional) Enables the software to capture the 802.1q or ISL
VLAN-ID field from VLAN encapsulated frames in a flow that
is received or transmitted on trunk ports.
Example:
Device(config)# ip flow-capture vlan-id

258
Verifying NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
Restrictions

Step 10 interface type [number | slot / port] Enters interface configuration mode for the type of interface
specified in the command.
Example:
Device(config)# interface ethernet 0/0
Step 11 Enter one of the following commands: Enables ingress NetFlow data collection on the interface.
ip flow ingress or
ip flow egress Enables egress NetFlow data collection on the interface.
Example:
Device(config-if)# ip flow ingress
or
Device(config-if)# ip flow egress
Step 12 exit Exits interface configuration mode.
Example:
Device(config-if)# exit

Perform this task to verify the configuration of NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports.
Restrictions, page 259
Restrictions
The Verifying NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports task uses the show ip cache verbose
flow command. The following restrictions apply to using the show ip cache verbose flow command.
Displaying Detailed NetFlow Cache Information on Platforms Running Distributed Cisco Express
Forwarding
On platforms running distributed Cisco Express Forwarding (formerly known as dCEF), NetFlow cache
information is maintained on each line card or Versatile Interface Processor (VIP). If you want to use the
show ip cache verbose flow command to display this information on a distributed platform, you must enter
the command at a line card prompt.
Cisco 7500 Series Platform
To display detailed NetFlow cache information on a Cisco 7500 series router that is running distributed
Cisco Express Forwarding (formerly known as dCEF), enter the following sequence of commands:
Device# if-con

259
Restrictions
slot-number
LC-
slot-number
# show ip cache verbose flow
Depending on your release, you can retrieve detailed NetFlow cache information. Enter the following
command to display detailed NetFlow cache information:
Device# execute-on
slot-number
show ip cache verbose flow

To display detailed NetFlow cache information on a Cisco 12000 series router, enter the following
sequence of commands:
Device# attach
slot-number
LC-
slot-number
# show ip cache verbose flow
Depending on your release, you can retrieve detailed NetFlow cache information. Enter the following
command to display detailed NetFlow cache information:
Device# execute-on slot-number show ip cache verbose flow
The following sample output shows values from the Layer 2 and Layer 3 fields in the flows captured by the
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature.
Device# show ip cache verbose flow

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .000 .206 .793 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
TCP-Telnet 1 0.0 362 940 2.7 60.2 0.0
TCP-FTP 1 0.0 362 840 2.7 60.2 0.0
TCP-FTPD 1 0.0 362 840 2.7 60.1 0.1
TCP-SMTP 1 0.0 361 1040 2.7 60.0 0.1
UDP-other 5 0.0 1 66 0.0 1.0 10.6
ICMP 2 0.0 8829 1378 135.8 60.7 0.0
Total: 11 0.0 1737 1343 147.0 33.4 4.8
Et0/0.1 10.251.138.218 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 80 00 65
0015 /0 0 0015 /0 0 10.0.0.0 840 10.8
MAC: (VLAN id) aaaa.bbbb.cc03 (005) aaaa.bbbb.cc06 (006)
Min plen: 840 Max plen: 840

260
Configuring NBAR Support for NetFlow Exports
Restrictions
Min TTL: 59 Max TTL: 59

IP id: 0
Configuring NBAR Support for NetFlow Exports

Perform this task to export NBAR data to the Cisco NetFlow Collector Software.
You must enable NetFlow Version 9 and NBAR before you configure NBAR data export.
You must add and configure the following fields to the Cisco NetFlow Collector Software to identify the
flow exported by the NBAR data export feature:
app_id field as an integer with Numeric ID of 95.
app_name field as a UTF-8 String with Numeric ID of 96.
sub_app_id field as an integer with Numeric ID of 97.
biflowDirection field as an integer with Numeric ID of 239.
Note The biflowDirection field provides information about the host that initiates the session. The size of this
field is one byte. RFC 5103 provides details for using this field.
Note NBAR support can be configured only with the NetFlow Version 9 format. If you try to configure NBAR
data export with other versions, the following error message appears:
1d00h: %FLOW : Export version 9 not enabled
NBAR data export does not use NetFlow aging parameters.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-export version 9
4. ip flow-capture nbar
5. ip flow-export template options nbar
6. exit
7. show ip flow export nbar
8. clear ip flow stats nbar
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable

261
Restrictions

Example:
Step 3 ip flow-export version 9 Enables the Version 9 format to export NetFlow cache
entries.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-capture version 9
Step 4 ip flow-capture nbar Enables you to capture the NBAR data in NetFlow export
records.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-capture nbar
Step 5 ip flow-export template options nbar Exports application mapping information to the Cisco
NetFlow Collector Software.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-export template options nbar
Step 6 exit Exits global configuration mode.
Example:
Step 7 show ip flow export nbar (Optional) Displays NBAR export records.
Example:
Router# show ip flow export nbar
Step 8 clear ip flow stats nbar (Optional) Clears NetFlow accounting statistics for
NBAR.
Example:
Router# clear ip flow stats nbar

262
Example: Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security

Monitoring Exports
Example: Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 263
Example: Configuring NBAR Support for NetFlow Exports, page 277
Example: Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports

The following example shows how to configure the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
feature:
Router> enable
Router(config)# ip flow-capture fragment-offset
Router(config)# ip flow-capture icmp
Router(config)# ip flow-capture ip-id
Router(config)# ip flow-capture mac-addresses
Router(config)# ip flow-capture packet-length
Router(config)# ip flow-capture ttl
Router(config)# ip flow-capture vlan-id
or
Example: Analyzing a Simulated FTP Attack

The following example shows how to use the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature to
find out whether your network is being attacked by a host that is sending fake FTP traffic in an attempt to
overwhelm the FTP server. This attack might cause end users to see a degradation in the ability of the FTP
server to accept new connections or to service existing connections.
Figure 7 shows a network in which Host A is sending fake FTP packets to the FTP server.
This example also shows you how to use the Layer 2 data, captured by the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security
Monitoring Exports feature, to learn where the traffic is originating and what path it is taking through the
network.
Figure 32 Test Network

263
Tip Track the MAC addresses and IP addresses of the devices in your network. You can use them to analyze
attacks and resolve problems.
Note This example does not include the ip flow-capture icmp command, which captures the value of the ICMP
type and code fields.
R2
!
hostname R2
!
mac-address aaaa.bbbb.cc02
ip address 172.16.1.2 255.255.255.0
!
no ip address
!
interface Ethernet1/0.1
ip address 172.16.6.1 255.255.255.0
!
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
R3
!
hostname R3
!
ip flow-capture fragment-offset
ip flow-capture packet-length
ip flow-capture ttl
ip flow-capture vlan-id
ip flow-capture ip-id
ip flow-capture mac-addresses
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.6.2 255.255.255.0
ip accounting output-packets
ip flow ingress
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.7.1 255.255.255.0
ip flow egress

264
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
R4
!
hostname R4
!
ip address 172.16.10.1 255.255.255.0
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.7.2 255.255.255.0
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
The show ip cache verbose flow command displays the NetFlow flows that have been captured from the
FTP traffic that Host A is sending.
The fields that have values captured by the ip flow-capture command are shown in Table 6. The fields and
values are used to analyze the traffic for this example. The other fields captured by the show ip cache
verbose flow command are explained in subsequent tables (Table 7 to Table 9).
R3# show ip cache verbose flow

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.000 .003 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .000 .995 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
The preceding output shows the percentage distribution of packets by size. In this display, 99.5 percent of
the packets fall in the 1024-byte size range, and 0.3 percent fall in the 64-byte range.
The rest of the output of the show ip cache verbose flow command is as follows:

TCP-FTP 5 0.0 429 840 6.6 58.1 1.8
Total: 5 0.0 129 835 6.6 17.6 7.9
Et0/0.1 10.132.221.111 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 80 00 198
0015 /0 0 0015 /0 0 0.0.0.0 840 41.2

265

IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.251.138.218 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 80 00 198
0015 /0 0 0015 /0 0 0.0.0.0 840 41.2
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.10.12.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 80 00 203
0015 /0 0 0015 /0 0 0.0.0.0 840 42.2
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.231.185.254 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 80 00 203
0015 /0 0 0015 /0 0 0.0.0.0 840 42.2
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.71.200.138 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 80 00 203
0015 /0 0 0015 /0 0 0.0.0.0 840 42.2
IP id: 0
R3#
Table 6 describes the significant fields shown in the NetFlow cache section of the output.
Table 46 Field Descriptions in the NetFlow Cache Section of the Output
Field Description
bytes Number of bytes of memory used by the NetFlow
cache.
active Number of active flows in the NetFlow cache at the

time this command was entered.
inactive Number of flow buffers that are allocated in the

NetFlow cache but that were not assigned to a
specific flow at the time this command was entered.
added Number of flows created since the start of the

summary period.
ager polls Number of times the NetFlow code caused entries

to expire (used by Cisco Customer Support
Engineers (CSEs) for diagnostic purposes).
flow alloc failures Number of times the NetFlow code tried to allocate
a flow but could not.
last clearing of statistics The period of time that has passed since the clear
ip flow stats command was last executed. The
standard time output format of hours, minutes, and
seconds (hh:mm:ss) is used for a period of time less
than 24 hours. This time output format changes to
hours and days after the time exceeds 24 hours.
Table 7 describes the significant fields shown in the activity by the protocol section of the output.

266
Table 47 Field Descriptions in the Activity by Protocol Section of the Output
Field Description
Protocol IP protocol and the well-known port number. (Refer to http://www.iana.org,
Protocol Assignment Number Services, for the latest RFC values.)
Note Only a small subset of all protocols is displayed.
Total Flows Number of flows for this protocol since the last time statistics were cleared.
Flows/Sec Average number of flows for this protocol per second, which is equal to the
total flows divided by the number of seconds for this summary period.
Packets/Flow Average number of packets for the flows for this protocol, which is equal to
the total packets for this protocol divided by the number of flows for this
protocol for this summary period.
Bytes/Pkt Average number of bytes for the packets for this protocol, which is equal to
the total bytes for this protocol divided by the total number of packets for this
Packets/Sec Average number of packets for this protocol per second, which is equal to the
total packets for this protocol divided by the total number of seconds for this
summary period.
Active(Sec)/Flow Number of seconds between the first and the last packet of an expired flow
divided by the number of total flows for this protocol, for this summary
period.
Idle(Sec)/Flow Number of seconds observed from the last packet in each nonexpired flow for
this protocol until the time at which the show ip cache verbose flow
command was entered divided by the total number of flows for this protocol,
for this summary period.
Table 8 describes the significant fields in the NetFlow record section of the output.
Table 48 Field Descriptions in the NetFlow Record Section of the Output
Field Description
SrcIf Interface on which the packet was received.
Port Msk AS Source port number (displayed in hexadecimal

format), IP address mask, and autonomous system
number. This is always set to 0 in Multiprotocol
Label Switching (MPLS) flows.

267
Field Description
SrcIPaddress The source IP address of the traffic in the five
flows. The traffic is using five different IP source
addresses. They are:
10.132.221.111
10.251.138.218
10.10.12.1
10.231.185.254
10.71.200.138
DstIf Interface from which the packet was sent.

Note If an asterisk (*) immediately follows the
DstIf field, the flow being shown is an
egress flow.

number. The value of this field is always set to 0 in
MPLS flows.
DstIPaddress The destination IP address of the traffic.

Note 172.17.10.2 is the IP address of the FTP
server.
NextHop The Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) next-hop

address. This is always set to 0 in MPLS flows.
Pr IP protocol well-known port number, displayed

in hexadecimal format. (Refer to http://
www.iana.org, Protocol Assignment Number
Services, for the latest RFC values.)
ToS Type of service, displayed in hexadecimal format.
B/Pk Average number of bytes observed in the packets

seen for this flow.
Flgs TCP flag, shown in hexadecimal format. This value

is the result of bitwise OR of the TCP flags from all
packets in the flow.
Pkts Number of packets in this flow.
Active Time the flow has been active.
Table 9 describes the fields and values for the NetFlow Traffic Classification and Identification fields for
the NetFlow record lines section of the output.

268
Table 49 NetFlow Traffic Classification and Identification Fields in the NetFlow Record lines section of the
Output
Field Description
MAC The source and destination MAC addresses from
the traffic, read from left to right in the output.
The traffic is received from MAC address
aaaa.bbbb.cc03.
Note This MAC address is interface 1/0.1 on
router R2.
The traffic is transmitted to MAC address

aaaa.bbbb.cc06.
router R4.
VLAN id The source and destination VLAN IDs, read from

left to right in the output.
The traffic is received from VLAN 5.
The traffic is transmitted to VLAN 6.
Min plen The minimum packet length for packets captured in

the five flows.
The current value is 840.
Max plen The maximum packet length for packets captured in

the five flows.
Min TTL The minimum time to live (TTL) for packets

captured in the five flows.
Max TTL The maximum TTL for packets captured in the five
flows.
IP ID The IP identifier field for the traffic in the five

flows.
The fact that the Layer 3 TTL, identifier, and packet length fields in the five flows have the same values
indicates that this traffic is a DoS attack. If this data had been captured from real traffic, the values would
normally be different. The fact that all five of these flows have a TTL value of 59 indicates that this traffic
is originating from points that are at the same distance from R3. Real user traffic would normally be
arriving from different distances; therefore, the TTL values would be different.
If this traffic is identified as a DoS attack (based on the data captured in the Layer 3 fields), you can use the
Layer 2 information in the flows to identify the path the traffic is taking through the network. In this

269
example, the traffic is being sent to R3 on VLAN 5, by R2. You can demonstrate that R2 is transmitting the
traffic over interface 1/0.1 because the source MAC address (aaaa.bbbb.cc03) belongs to 1/0.1 on R2. You
can identify that R3 is transmitting the traffic using VLAN 6 on interface 1/0.1 to interface 1/0.1 on R4
because the destination MAC address (aaaa.bbbb.cc06) belongs to interface 1/0.1 on R4.
You can use this information to mitigate this attack. One possible way to mitigate this attack is to configure
an extended IP access list that blocks FTP traffic from any host with a source address that is on the 10.0.0.0
network. Another possible solution is to configure a default route for the 10.0.0.0 network that points to the
null interface on the router.
Caution Each of these solutions blocks traffic from legitimate hosts on the 10.0.0.0 network. Therefore these
solutions should be used only while you identify the point of origin of the attack and decide how to stop it.
Example: Analyzing a Simulated ICMP Ping Attack

learn that your network is being attacked by ICMP traffic. It uses the network shown in Figure 7. Host A is
sending very large ICMP ping packets to the FTP server.
R2
!
hostname R2
!
ip address 172.16.1.2 255.255.255.0
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.6.1 255.255.255.0
!
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
R3
!
hostname R3
!
ip flow-capture ttl
ip flow-capture icmp
!
no ip address
!

270
ip address 172.16.6.2 255.255.255.0

ip flow ingress
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.7.1 255.255.255.0
ip flow egress
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
R4
!
hostname R4
!
ip address 172.16.10.1 255.255.255.0
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.7.2 255.255.255.0
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
The show ip cache verbose flow command displays the NetFlow flows that have been captured from the
ICMP traffic that Host A is sending.
The fields that have their values captured by the ip flow-capture command are explained in Table 10. The
fields and values are used to analyze the traffic for this example. The other fields captured by the show ip
cache verbose flow command are explained in the subsequent tables (Table 11 to Table 13).

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .000 .166 .832 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
The preceding output shows the percentage distribution of packets by size. In this display, 16.6 percent of
the packets fall in the 1024-byte size range and 83.2 percent fall in the 1536-byte range.
The rest of the output of the show ip cache verbose flow command is as follows:


271

1 chunk, 0 chunks added
last clearing of statistics 00:01:13
ICMP 2 0.0 1500 1378 42.8 11.4 10.9
Total: 2 0.0 600 1378 42.9 11.5 10.8
Et0/0.1 10.106.1.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 391
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 1500 8.6
ICMP type: 8 ICMP code: 0
IP id: 13499
Et0/0.1 10.106.1.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 00 1950
0000 /0 0 0000 /0 0 0.0.0.0 1354 8.6
IP id: 13499 FO: 185
R3#
For field descriptions of the NetFlow Cache output, see Table 10.
Table 50 Field Descriptions in the NetFlow Cache Section of the Output
Field Description
bytes Number of bytes of memory used by the NetFlow
cache.
active Number of active flows in the NetFlow cache at the

time this command was entered.
inactive Number of flow buffers that are allocated in the

NetFlow cache but that were not assigned to a
specific flow at the time this command was entered.
added Number of flows created since the start of the

summary period.
ager polls Number of times the NetFlow code caused entries

to expire (used by Cisco Customer Support
Engineers (CSEs) for diagnostic purposes).
flow alloc failures Number of times the NetFlow code tried to but was
not able to allocate flows.
last clearing of statistics The period of time that has passed since the clear
ip flow stats command was last executed. The
standard time output format of hours, minutes, and
seconds (hh:mm:ss) is used for a period of time less
than 24 hours. The time output format changes to
hours and days after the time exceeds 24 hours.
For field descriptions of the Activity by Protocol lines section of the output, see Table 11.

272
Table 51 Field Descriptions in the Activity by Protocol lines section of the Output
Field Description
Protocol IP protocol and the well-known port number. (Refer
to http://www.iana.org, Protocol Assignment
Number Services, for the latest RFC values.)
Note Only a small subset of all protocols is
displayed.
Total Flows Number of flows for this protocol since the last
time statistics were cleared.
Flows/Sec Average number of flows for this protocol per

second, which is equal to the total flows divided by
the number of seconds for this summary period.
Packets/Flow Average number of packets for the flows for this

protocol, which is equal to the total packets for this
protocol divided by the number of flows for this
Bytes/Pkt Average number of bytes for the packets for this

protocol, which is equal to the total bytes for this
protocol divided by the total number of packets for
this protocol for this summary period.
Packets/Sec Average number of packets for this protocol per

second, which is equal to the total packets for this
protocol divided by the total number of seconds for
this summary period.
Active(Sec)/Flow Number of seconds between the first and the last

packet of an expired flow divided by the number of
total flows for this protocol, for this summary
period.
Idle(Sec)/Flow Number of seconds observed from the last packet in

each nonexpired flow for this protocol until the
time at which the show ip cache verbose flow
command was entered, divided by the total number
of flows for this protocol, for this summary period.
For field descriptions of the NetFlow Record lines section of the output, see Table 12.
Table 52 Field Descriptions in the NetFlow Record lines section of the Output
Field Description

273
Field Description
number. The value of this field is always set to 0 in
MPLS flows.
SrcIPaddress IP address of the device that transmitted the packet.

The sending host is using 10.106.1.1 as the source
IP address.
DstIf Interface from which the packet was sent.

Note If an asterisk (*) immediately follows the
DstIf field, the flow being shown is an
egress flow.
Port Msk AS Destination port number (displayed in hexadecimal

format), IP address mask, and autonomous system.
This is always set to 0 in MPLS flows.
DstIPaddress IP address of the destination device.
NextHop The BGP next-hop address. This is always set to 0

in MPLS flows.
Pr IP protocol well-known port number, displayed

in hexadecimal format. (Refer to http://
www.iana.org, Protocol Assignment Number
Services, for the latest RFC values.)
ToS Type of service, displayed in hexadecimal format.
B/Pk Average number of bytes observed for the packets

seen for this flow.
Flgs TCP flag, shown in hexadecimal format. This value

is the result of bitwise OR of the TCP flags from all
packets in the flow.
Pkts Number of packets in this flow.
Active Time the flow has been active.
For field descriptions of the NetFlow Traffic Classification and Identification fields, see Table 13.

274
Table 53 NetFlow Traffic Classification and Identification
Field Description
MAC The source and destination MAC addresses from
the traffic, read from left to right in the output.
The traffic is received from MAC address
aaaa.bbbb.cc03.
router R2.
The traffic is transmitted to MAC address

aaaa.bbbb.cc06.
router R4.
VLAN id The source and destination VLAN IDs, read from

left to right in the output.
The traffic is received from VLAN 5.
The traffic is transmitted to VLAN 6.
Min plen The minimum packet length for the packets

captured in the two flows.
The current value for the first flow is 1500.
The current value for the second flow is 772.
Max plen The maximum packet length for the packets

The current value for the first flow is 1500.
The current value for the second flow is 1500.
Min TTL The minimum time to live (TTL) for the packets
Max TTL The maximum TTL for the packets captured in the
two flows.
IP The IP identifier field for the traffic in the flows.

The current value is 13499 for the two flows.
ICMP type The Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP)

type field from the ICMP datagram captured in the
first flow.
The value is 8.

275
Field Description
ICMP code The ICMP code field from the ICMP datagram
captured in the second flow.
The value is 0.
FO This is the value of the fragment offset field from

the first fragmented datagram in the second flow.
The value is 185.
Two ICMP flows are shown in the output. They are from the same ICMP datagram because they have the
same IP ID field value of 13499. When two ICMP flows have the same IP ID value, the ICMP datagram
being analyzed has been fragmented. The first flow has the ICMP type field set to 8, which indicates that
this is an ICMP echo request (ping) datagram. The value of 185 in the fragment offset (FO) field in the
second flow shows where this fragment will be placed in the memory buffer of the FTP server as the server
reassembles the ICMP datagram. The value of 185 applies only to the first fragment of this datagram. The
subsequent values will be greater because they include the previous fragments.
The value of 0 in the ICMP type field of the second flow does not mean that this flow is an ICMP echo
reply as Table 13 shows. In this case, the ICMP type field value is set to 0 because the ICMP headers for
fragments of ICMP datagrams do not have the type and code fields. The default value of 0 is inserted
instead.
Note If this data were captured from a real ICMP attack, it would probably have more than one flow.
Although you cannot learn the original size of the ICMP datagram from the information shown by the show
ip cache verbose flow command, the fact that the datagram was large enough to be fragmented in transit is
a good indication that this is not a normal ICMP datagram. Notice the values in the minimum packet length
and maximum packet length fields for both flows. The values for both fields are set to 1500 for the first
flow. The value for the minimum packet length is set to 772 and the value for the maximum packet length
is set to 1500 for the second flow.
If this traffic is identified as a DoS attack based on the data captured in the Layer 3 fields, you can use the
Layer 2 information in the flows to identify the path that the traffic is taking through the network. In this
example, the traffic is being sent to R3 on VLAN 5, by R2. Here, R2 is transmitting the traffic over
interface 1/0.1 because the source MAC address (aaaa.bbb.cc03) belongs to 1/0.1 on R2. It is evident that
R3 is transmitting the traffic using VLAN 6 on interface 1/0.1 to interface 1/0.1 on R4, because the
destination MAC address (aaaa.bbbb.cc06) belongs to interface 1/0.1 on R4.
You can use this information to mitigate the attack. One possible way to mitigate this attack is by
configuring an extended IP access list that blocks ICMP traffic from any host with a source address that is
on the 10.0.0.0 network. Another possible solution is to configure a default route for the 10.0.0.0 network
that points to the null interface on the router.
Caution Each of these solutions blocks traffic from legitimate hosts on the 10.0.0.0 network. Therefore, these
solutions should be used only while you identify the point of origin of the attack and decide how to stop it.

276
Example: Configuring NBAR Support for NetFlow Exports
Example: Configuring NBAR Support for NetFlow Exports

The following example shows how to configure NBAR support for NetFlow exports:
Device(config)# ip flow-export version 9

Device(config)# ip flow-capture nbar
Device(config)# ip flow-export template options nbar
Device(config)# exit
The following is sample output from the show ip flow export nbar command:
Device# show ip flow export nbar
Nbar netflow is enabled

10 nbar flows exported
0 nbar flows failed to export due to lack of internal buffers
The following example shows how to clear NBAR data from NetFlow accounting statistics:
Device# clear ip flow stats nbar
Related Documents

Cisco IOS master command list, all releases Cisco IOS Master Command List, All Releases
Overview of NetFlow Cisco IOS NetFlow Overview
Overview of NBAR Classifying Network Traffic Using NBAR
Configuring NBAR Configuring NBAR Using the MQC
Configuring NBAR using protocol-discovery Enabling Protocol Discovery
Capturing and exporting network traffic data Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export
Standards and RFCs
Standards/RFCs Title
RFC 5103 Bidirectional Flow Export Using IP Flow
Information Export (IPFIX)

277
Feature Information for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
Description Link
content.
Feature Information for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security

Monitoring Exports
feature.
Table 54 Feature Information for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports

Application-Aware NetFlow 12.2(18)ZYA2 The Application-Aware NetFlow
feature enables capturing of
application information collected
by PISA NBAR and exports
using NetFlow Version 9.
modified by this feature: clear ip
flow stats, ip flow-capture, ip
flow-export template options,
and show ip flow export.
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security 12.2(33)SRA The NetFlow Layer 2 and

Monitoring Exports Security Monitoring Exports
12.3(14)T
feature enables the capture of
values from fields in Layer 2 and
Layer 3 of IP traffic for
accounting and security analysis.
capture, ip flow-export, and

278
Glossary

Support for capturing the value 12.4(2)T The fragment-offset keyword for
from the fragment offset field of the ip flow-capture command
IP headers added to NetFlow enables capturing the value of the
Layer 2 and Security Monitoring IP fragment offset field from the
Exports9 first fragmented IP datagram in a
flow.
Glossary
export packetA type of packet built by a device (for example, a router) with NetFlow services enabled.
The packet contains NetFlow statistics. The packet is addressed to another device (for example, the
NetFlow Collection Engine). The other device processes the packet (parses, aggregates, and stores
information about IP flows).
flowA set of packets with the same source IP address, destination IP address, protocol, source/destination
ports, type of service, and the same interface on which flow is monitored. Ingress flows are associated with
the input interface, and egress flows are associated with the output interface.
NBARA classification engine in the Cisco IOS software that recognizes a wide variety of applications,
including web-based and client/server applications.
NetFlowCisco IOS accounting feature that maintains per-flow information.
NetFlow AggregationA NetFlow feature that lets you summarize NetFlow export data on a Cisco IOS
router before the data is exported to a NetFlow data collection system such as the NetFlow Collection
Engine. This feature lowers bandwidth requirements for NetFlow export data and reduces platform
requirements for NetFlow data collection devices.
NetFlow Collection Engine (formerly NetFlow FlowCollector)A Cisco application that is used with
NetFlow on specific Cisco devices. The NetFlow Collection Engine collects packets from the device that is
running NetFlow and decodes, aggregates, and stores them. You can generate reports on various
aggregations that can be set up on the NetFlow Collection Engine.
NetFlow v9NetFlow export format Version 9. A flexible and extensible means of carrying NetFlow
describing for easier NetFlow Collection Engine configurations.

279

280
NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP
emerging as a primary network accounting and security technology. This document describes the NetFlow
application and the new NetFlow Reliable Export With Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP)
feature.
The NetFlow Reliable Export with SCTP feature adds the ability for NetFlow to use the reliable and
congestion-aware SCTP when exporting statistics to a network management system that supports the
NetFlow data export formats, such as a system running CNS NetFlow Collection Engine (NFC).

Prerequisites for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP, page 281
Restrictions for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP, page 281
Information About NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP, page 282
How to Configure NetFlow Reliable Export with SCTP, page 289
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP, page 306
Feature Information for NetFlow Reliable Transport Using SCTP, page 309
Glossary, page 310

Prerequisites for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP

NetFlow and Cisco Express Forwarding (CEF), distributed CEF (dCEF), or fast switching must be
configured on your system.
Restrictions for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP

The NetFlow SCTP collector must support SCTP.

281
Information About NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP

NetFlow Benefits, page 282
NetFlow Cisco IOS Packaging Information, page 283
Elements of a NetFlow Network Flow, page 283
NetFlow Main Cache Operation, page 284
NetFlow Export Formats, page 284
NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP, page 285

NetFlow identifies packet flows for both ingress and egress IP packets. It does not involve any connection-
setup protocol. NetFlow is completely transparent to the existing network, including end stations and
application software and network devices like LAN switches. Also, NetFlow capture and export are
performed independently on each internetworking device; NetFlow need not be operational on each router
in the network.
NetFlow is supported on IP and IP encapsulated traffic over most interface types and Layer 2
encapsulations.
You can display and clear NetFlow statistics. NetFlow statistics consist of IP packet size distribution, IP
flow switching cache information, and flow information.
NetFlow Benefits
NetFlow can capture a rich set of traffic statistics. These traffic statistics include user, protocol, port, and
type of service (ToS) information that can be used for a wide variety of purposes, including network traffic
analysis and capacity planning, security, enterprise accounting and departmental chargebacks, Internet
Service Provider (ISP) billing, data warehousing, and data mining for marketing purposes.
Network Application and User Monitoring

NetFlow data enables you to view detailed, time and application based usage of a network. This
information allows you to plan and allocate network and application resources, and provides for extensive
near real-time network monitoring capabilities. It can be used to display traffic patterns and application-
based views. NetFlow provides proactive problem detection and efficient troubleshooting, and it facilitates
rapid problem resolution. You can use NetFlow information to efficiently allocate network resources and to
detect and resolve potential security and policy violations.
Network Analysis and Planning

You can use NetFlow to capture data for extended periods of time, which enables you to track network
utilization and anticipate network growth and plan upgrades. NetFlow service data can be used to optimize
network planning, which includes peering, backbone upgrades, and routing policy planning. It also enables
you to minimize the total cost of network operations while maximizing network performance, capacity, and
reliability. NetFlow detects unwanted WAN traffic, validates bandwidth and quality of service (QoS)
behavior, and enables the analysis of new network applications. NetFlow offers valuable information that
you can use to reduce the cost of operating the network.

282
Denial of Service and Security Analysis

You can use NetFlow data to identify and classify in real time denial of service (DoS) attacks, viruses, and
worms. Changes in network behavior indicate anomalies that are clearly reflected in NetFlow data. The
data is also a valuable forensic tool that you can use to understand and replay the history of security
incidents.
Accounting and Billing

NetFlow data provides fine-grained metering for highly flexible and detailed resource utilization
accounting. For example, flow data includes details such as IP addresses, packet and byte counts,
timestamps, and information about type of service (ToS) and application ports. Service providers might
utilize the information for billing based on time-of-day, bandwidth usage, application usage, or QoS.
Enterprise customers might utilize the information for departmental charge-back or cost allocation for
resource utilization.
Traffic Engineering
NetFlow provides autonomous system (AS) traffic engineering details. You can use NetFlow-captured
traffic data to understand source-to-destination traffic trends. This data can be used for load-balancing
traffic across alternate paths or for forwarding traffic along a preferred route. NetFlow can measure the
amount of traffic crossing peering or transit points. You can use the data to help you decide if a peering
arrangement with other service providers is fair and equitable.
NetFlow Data Storage and Data Mining

NetFlow data can be stored for later retrieval and analysis in support of marketing and customer service
programs. For example, the data can be mined to find out which applications and services are being used by
internal and external users and target the users for improved service and advertising. In addition, NetFlow
data gives market researchers access to the who, what, where, and how long information relevant to
enterprises and service providers.

Cisco 7200/7500/7400/MGX/AS5850
Although NetFlow functionality is included in all software images for these platforms, you must purchase a
separate NetFlow feature license. NetFlow licenses are sold on a per-node basis.
Other Routers
Use Cisco Feature Navigator to find information about platform support and Cisco IOS software image
support. Access Cisco Feature Navigator at http://www.cisco.com/go/fn . You must have an account on
Cisco.com. If you do not have an account or have forgotten your username or password, click Cancel at the
login dialog box and follow the instructions that appear.
Elements of a NetFlow Network Flow

A NetFlow network flow is defined as a unidirectional stream of packets between a given source and
destination. The source and destination are each defined by a network-layer IP address and transport-layer
source and destination port numbers. Specifically, a flow is defined by the combination of the following
seven key fields:

283
Source IP address
Source port number
Type of service
is considered to belong to another flow. A flow might also contain other accounting fields (such as the AS
number in the NetFlow export Version 5 flow format). The fields that a given flow contains depend on the
export record version that you configure. Flows are stored in the NetFlow cache.

The key components of NetFlow are the NetFlow cache that stores IP flow information and the NetFlow
export or transport mechanism that sends NetFlow data to a network management collector, such as the
NetFlow Collection Engine. NetFlow operates by creating a NetFlow cache entry (a flow record) for each
active flow. NetFlow maintains a flow record within the cache for each active flow. Each flow record in the
NetFlow cache contains values for the fields that are being monitored that can later be exported to a
collection device, such as the NetFlow Collection Engine.

NetFlow captures data from ingress (incoming) and egress (outgoing) packets. NetFlow gathers data for the
following ingress IP packets:
IP-to-IP packets
NetFlow captures data for all egress (outgoing) packets through use of the following features:
Egress NetFlow Accounting--NetFlow gathers data for all egress packets for IP traffic only.
NetFlow MPLS Egress--NetFlow gathers data for all egress MPLS-to-IP packets.
NetFlow Export Formats

NetFlow exports data in User Datagram Protocol (UDP) datagrams in one of five formats: Version 9,
Version 8, Version 7, Version 5, or Version 1. Version 9 export format, the latest version, is the most
flexible and extensible format. Version 1 was the initial NetFlow export format; Version 8 only supports
export from aggregation caches, and Version 7 is supported only on certain platforms. (Versions 2 through
4 and Version 6 were either not released or are not supported.)
MPLS, and Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) next hop. The distinguishing feature of the NetFlow
Version 9 format is that it is template based. Templates provide an extensible design to the record
format, a feature that should allow future enhancements to NetFlow services without requiring
concurrent changes to the basic flow-record format. Internet Protocol Information Export (IPFIX) was
based on the Version 9 export format.

284
Version 8--A format added to support data export from aggregation caches. Version 8 allows export
datagrams to contain a subset of the usual Version 5 export data, if that data is valid for a particular
Version 7--A version supported on a Catalyst 6000 series switch with a multilayer switch feature card
(MSFC) running CatOS Release 5.5(7) and later. On a Catalyst 6000 series switch with an MSFC, you
can export using either the Version 7 or the Version 8 format.
Version 5--A version that adds BGP AS information and flow sequence numbers.
Version 1--The initially released export format, rarely used today. Do not use the Version 1 export
format unless the legacy collection system you are using requires it. Use either the Version 9 export
format or the Version 5 export format for data export from the main cache.

Prior to the introduction of the NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP feature in Cisco IOS Release 12.4(4)T
exporting NetFlow information was unreliable because NetFlow encapsulated the exported traffic in UDP
packets for transmission to the NFC. Using an unreliable transport protocol such as UDP for sending
information across a network has two major disadvantages:
Lack of congestion awareness--The exporter sends packets as fast as it can generate them, without any
regard to the bandwidth available on the network. If the link is fully congested when the NetFlow
router attempts to send, the packet might simply be dropped, either before it is put on the exporters
output queue or before it gets to the next hop's input queue.
Lack of reliability--With export over UDP, the collector has no method of signaling to the exporter
that it didn't receive an exported packet. Most versions of NetFlow export packet contain a sequence
number, so the collector often knows when it has lost a packet. But given that the exporter discards the
export packet as soon as it has been sent and that the NetFlow router lacks a mechanism to request a
retransmission of the packet, exporting over UDP can be considered to be unreliable
The NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP feature uses the SCTP to overcome the two major disadvantages
of using UDP as the transport layer protocol:
SCTP has a congestion control mechanism to ensure that the router does not send data to the collector
faster than it can receive it.
SCTP transmits messages in a reliable manner. SCTP messages are buffered on the router until they
have been acknowledged by the collector. Messages that are not acknowledged by the collector are
retransmitted by the router.
SCTP is a reliable message-oriented transport layer protocol, which allows data to be transmitted between
two end-points in a reliable, partially reliable, or unreliable manner. An SCTP session consists of an
association between two end-points, which may contain one or more logical channels called streams.
SCTPs stream based transmission model facilitates the export of a mix of different data types, such as
NetFlow templates and NetFlow data, over the same connection. The maximum number of inbound and
outbound streams supported by an end-point is negotiated during the SCTP association initialization
process.
When you configure the NetFlow Version 9 Export and NetFlow Reliable Export features, NetFlow creates
a minimum of two streams--stream 0 for templates and options, and one or more streams for carrying data,
as required. The following commands are not applicable when you configure the NetFlow Version 9 Export
and NetFlow Reliable Export features together because NetFlow Reliable Export export connections use
SCTP reliable stream 0 for NetFlow Version 9 Export, and these commands apply only to NetFlow export
connections that use UDP:
ip flow-export template refresh-rate
ip flow-export template timeout-rate

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ip flow-export template options refresh-rate

ip flow-export template options timeout-rate
When more than one cache (main cache and one or more aggregation caches) is exporting data, each cache
creates its own streams with their own configured reliability levels. For example, you can configure the
main cache to use SCTP in full reliability mode and the NetFlow prefix aggregation cache to use partial
reliability mode to send messages to the same collector using the same SCTP port.
Note When you are using SCTP as the transport protocol for exporting NetFlow traffic, the traffic is usually
referred to as messages instead of datagrams because SCTP is a message-oriented protocol. When you are
using UDP as the transport protocol for exporting NetFlow traffic, the traffic is usually referred to as
datagrams because UDP is a datagram-oriented protocol.
Security
SCTP contains several built-in features to counter many common security threats such as the syn-flood type
of DoS attack.
SCTP uses the following techniques to resist flooding attacks:
A four-way start-up handshake is used to ensure that anyone opening an association is a genuine
caller, rather the someone performing a 'syn-flood' type of DoS attack.
Cookies are used to defer commitment of resources at the responding SCTP node until the handshake
is completed.
Verification Tags are used to prevent insertion of extraneous packets into the flow of an established
association.
Reliability Options
SCTP allows data to be transmitted between two end-points (a router running NetFlow SCTP export and a
collector that is receiving and acknowledging the SCTP messages) in a reliable manner. In addition to the
default behavior of full reliability, SCTP can be configured for partially-reliable or unreliable transmission
for applications that do not require full reliability.
When SCTP is operating in full reliability mode, it uses a selective-acknowledgment scheme to guarantee
the ordered delivery of messages. The SCTP protocol stack buffers messages until their receipt has been
acknowledged by the receiving end-point. (collector). SCTP has a congestion control mechanism that can
be used to limit how much memory is consumed by SCTP for buffering packets.
If a stream is specified as unreliable, then the packet is simply sent once and not buffered on the exporter. If
the packet is lost enroute to the receiver, the exporter cannot retransmit it.
When a stream is specified as partially-reliable a limit is placed on how much memory should be dedicated
to storing un-acknowledged packets. The limit on how much memory should be dedicated to storing
unacknowledged packets is configurable by means of the buffer-limit limit command. If the limit on how
much memory should be dedicated to storing unacknowledged packets is exceeded and the router attempts
to buffer another packet, the oldest unacknowledged packet is discarded. When SCTP discards the oldest
unacknowledged packet, a message called a forward-tsn (transmit sequence number) is sent to the collector
to indicate that this packet will not be received. This prevents NetFlow from consuming all the free
memory on a router when a situation has arisen which requires many packets to be buffered, for example
when SCTP is experiencing long response times from an SCTP peer connection.
When SCTP is operating in partially reliable mode, the limit on how much memory should be dedicated to
storing un-acknowledged packets should initially be set as high as possible. The limit can be reduced if

286
other processes on the router begin to run out of memory. Deciding on the best value for the limit involves
a trade-off between avoiding starving other processes of the memory that they require to operate and
dropping SCTP messages that have not been acknowledged by the collector.
Unreliable SCTP can be used when the collector that you are using doesnt support UDP as a transport
protocol for receiving NetFlow export datagrams and you do not want to allocate the resources on your
router required to provide reliable, or partially reliable, SCTP connections.
Congestion Avoidance
SCTP uses congestion avoidance algorithms that are similar to those for TCP. An SCTP end-point
advertises the size of its receive window (rWnd) to ensure that a sender cannot flood it with more messages
than it can store in its input queues.
Each SCTP sender also maintains a congestion window (cWnd), which determines the number of
unacknowledged packets that can be outstanding at a given time. SCTP uses the same 'slow-start' algorithm
as TCP, in which it starts with a small cWnd and gradually increases it until it reaches its optimum size.
Whenever a packet isn't acknowledged within the given timeout period, the value of cWnd is halved. This
method of congestion avoidance is known as added increase / multiplicative decrease and has been shown
to be the most effective congestion avoidance algorithm in most circumstances.
SCTP also employs the fast-retransmit algorithm whereby it retransmits a message if it receives
acknowledgments from four messages which were sent after the message in question. This is preferable to
waiting for the timeout period to elapse and triggering a retransmit of the message.
Options for Backup Collectors

You can configure a backup collector for SCTP. It is used as a message destination in the event that the
primary collector becomes unavailable. When connectivity with the primary collector has been lost, and a
backup collector is configured, SCTP begins using the backup collector. The default period of time that
SCTP waits until it starts using the backup collector is 25 milliseconds (msec). You can configure a
different value for interval with the fail-over time command.
The router sends periodic SCTP heartbeat messages to the SCTP collectors that you have configured. The
router uses the SCTP heartbeat message acknowledgements from the collectors to monitor the status of
each collector. This allows an application, such as NetFlow, to be quickly informed when connectivity to a
collector is lost.
You can configure SCTP backup in fail-over or redundant mode. When the router is configured with SCTP
backup in fail-over mode, the router waits to activate the association with the backup collector until the
router has not received acknowledgements for the SCTP heartbeat messages from the primary collector for
the time specified by the fail-over time command (or the default of 25 msec if this parameter has not been
modified).
Note SCTP retransmits messages that have not been acknowledged three times. The router will initiate fail-over
after three retransmissions of the same message are not acknowledged by the primary collector.
When the router is configured with SCTP backup in redundant mode, the router activates the association
with the backup collector immediately, and if NetFlow v9 export is configured the router sends the
(options) templates in advance. The router will not start sending other SCTP messages to a backup collector
in redundant mode until the router has not received acknowledgments for the SCTP heartbeat messages
from the primary collector for the time specified by the fail-over time command. Fail-over mode is the
preferred method when the backup collector is on the end of an expensive lower-bandwidth link such as
ISDN.

287
During the time that SCTP is using the backup collector, SCTP continues to try to restore the association
with the primary collector. This goes on until connectivity is restored or the primary SCTP collector is
removed from the configuration.
When connectivity to the primary collector is available again, the router waits for a period of time before
reverting to using it as the primary destination. You configure the value of the period of time that SCTP
waits until reverting to the primary collector with the restore-time time command. The default period of
time that SCTP waits until it reverts to the primary collector is 25 sec.
Under either fail-over mode any records which have been queued between losing connectivity with the
primary destination and establishing the association with the backup collector might be lost. A count is
maintained of how many records were lost. It can be viewed with the show ip flow export sctp verbose
command.
To avoid a flapping SCTP association with a collector (the SCTP association goes up and down in quick
succession), the time period configured with the restore-time time command should be greater than the
period of a typical connectivity problem. For example, your router is configured to use IP fast convergence
for its routing table and you have a LAN interface that is going up and down repeatedly (flapping). That
causes the IP route to the primary collector to be added and removed from the routing table repeatedly
(route flapping) every 2000 msec (2 sec). you need to configure the restore time for a value greater than
2000 msecs.
The backup connection uses stream 0 for sending templates, options templates, and option data record. The
data stream(s) inherit the reliability settings of the primary connection.
Export to Multiple Collectors

You can configure your networking device to export NetFlow data to a maximum of two export
destinations (collectors) per cache (main and aggregation caches), using any combination of UDP and
SCTP. A destination is identified by a unique combination of hostname or IP address and port number or
port type. The table below shows examples of permitted multiple NetFlow export destinations for each
cache.
Table 55 Examples of Permitted Multiple NetFlow Export Destinations for Each Cache
First Export Destination Second Export Destination

ip flow-export 10.25.89.32 100 udp ip flow-export 10.25.89.32 285 udp
ip flow-export 10.25.89.32 100 udp ip flow-export 10.25.89.32 100 sctp
ip flow-export 10.25.89.32 100 sctp ip flow-export 10.25.89.32 285 sctp
The most common use of the multiple-destination feature is to send the NetFlow cache entries to two
different destinations for redundancy. Therefore, in most cases the second destination IP address is not the
same as the first IP address. The port numbers can be the same when you are configuring two unique
destination IP addresses. If you want to configure both instances of the command to use the same
destination IP address, you must use unique port numbers. You receive a warning message when you

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Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination
How to Configure NetFlow Reliable Export with SCTP
configure the two instances of the command with the same IP address. The warning message is,
"%Warning: Second destination address is the same as previous address <ip-address>".
SCTP Support For Export Formats

SCTP based reliable transport is available for all NetFlow export formats: Versions 1, 5, 8 and 9.

You can configure two primary SCTP export destinations (collectors) and two backup SCTP export
destinations for each NetFlow cache (main cache and aggregation caches). The backup SCTP export
destinations inherit the reliability characteristics of the primary SCTP export destination. For example, if
you configure partial reliability with a buffer limit of 2000 packets for the primary SCTP export
destination, the backup SCTP destination also uses partial reliability and a buffer limit of 2000 packets.
You can use several permutations when you configure NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP. The most
basic configuration requires only one SCTP export destination. The other tasks below explain how to
configure some of the more common permutations of NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP.
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination, page 289
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination with Partial Reliability, page 290
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination with No Reliability, page 292
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination and One Backup Export Destination,
page 293
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination and One Backup Exp Dest With Fail-
Over Mode Backup, page 295
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for Two Export Destinations and Two Backup Export
Destinations, page 297
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Fully Reliable and One Partially Reliable Export
Destination, page 299
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for the NetFlow Source-Prefix Aggregation Cache, page 301
Verifying NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP, page 303
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination

This is the most basic NetFlow SCTP export configuration. This NetFlow SCTP export configuration uses
full reliability.
You must have NetFlow enabled on at least one interface in your router before you can export NetFlow
data.
You must have a NetFlow collector in your network that supports NetFlow SCTP export.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-export destination [ip-address | hostname] port sctp
4. end
5. show ip flow export sctp verbose

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Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination with Partial Reliability
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Enters privileged EXEC mode.
Example:
Router> enable
Step 2 configure terminal
Enters global configuration mode.
Example:

Step 3 ip flow-export destination [ip-address | hostname] port sctp
Configures an export destination using SCTP on port 100.
Example:
Router (config)# ip flow-export destination 172.16.12.200 100 sctp

Step 4 end
Returns to privileged EXEC mode.
Example:
Router(config-flow-export-sctp)# end
Step 5 show ip flow export sctp verbose
Displays the status and statistics for NetFlow SCTP export. Reliability is set to the default of full.
Example:
Router# show ip flow export sctp verbose
IPv4 main cache exporting to 172.16.12.200, port 100, full

status: connected
backup mode: redundant
4 flows exported in 4 sctp messages.
0 packets dropped due to lack of SCTP resources
fail-over time: 25 milli-seconds
restore time: 25 seconds
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination with Partial
Reliability
This NetFlow SCTP export configuration uses partial reliability.

290
data.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
4. reliability partial buffer-limit limit
5. end
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Example:
Router> enable
Example:

Example:

Step 4 reliability partial buffer-limit limit
Configures partial reliability for this SCTP export destination and sets the packet buffer limit to 3000.
Example:
Router(config-flow-export-sctp)# reliability partial buffer-limit 3000

Step 5 end

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Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination with No Reliability
Example:
Displays the status and statistics for NetFlow SCTP export. Reliability is now set to partial.
Example:
Pv4 main cache exporting to 172.16.12.200, port 100, partial

status: connected
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination with No

Reliability
Reliability is disabled in this NetFlow SCTP export configuration.
data.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
4. reliability none
5. end
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Example:
Router> enable

292
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination and One Backup Export Destination
Example:

Example:

Step 4 reliability none
Configures partial reliability for this SCTP export destination and sets the packet buffer limit to none.
Example:
Router(config-flow-export-sctp)# reliability none

Step 5 end
Example:
Displays the status and statistics for NetFlow SCTP export. Reliability is now set to none.
Example:
Pv4 main cache exporting to 172.16.12.200, port 100, none

status: connected
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination and One
Backup Export Destination
This NetFlow SCTP export configuration uses full reliability, a backup SCTP export destination, and
redundant mode backup.
data.

293
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
4. backup destination [ip-address | hostname] sctp-port
5. end
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Example:
Router> enable
Example:

Example:

Step 4 backup destination [ip-address | hostname] sctp-port
Configures an SCTP backup destination using SCTP on port 200.
Example:
Router(config-flow-export-sctp)# backup destination 192.168.247.198 200

Step 5 end
Example:
Displays the status and statistics for NetFlow SCTP export. Backup mode is redundant. The association with the
SCTP backup export destination is active (connected). The SCTP backup export destination is not being used because
the primary export destination is still active (connected).

294
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination and One Backup Exp Dest With Fail-Over Mode Backup
Example:

status: connected
backup: 192.168.247.198, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 0
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Export Destination and One
Backup Exp Dest With Fail-Over Mode Backup
Perform this task to configure NetFlow SCTP export for one export and one backup destination with fail-
over mode backup.
data.
This NetFlow SCTP export configuration uses full reliability, a backup SCTP export destination, and fail-
over mode backup.
Note The backup fail-over and restore times are modified here so that you can see an example of how to
configure these commands. The values used in this example might not be suitable for your network. If you
want to override the default values for the fail-over and restore times you need to analyze the performance
of your network and the collector that you are using to determine values that are appropriate for your
network.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
5. backup mode fail-over
6. backup fail-over fail-over-time
7. backup restore-time restore-time
8. end

295
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Example:
Router> enable
Example:

Example:

Example:

Step 5 backup mode fail-over
Configures the router to fail-over mode for the backup export destination.
Example:
Router(config-flow-export-sctp)# backup mode fail-over

Step 6 backup fail-over fail-over-time
The length of time that the router will wait until failing over to the backup SCTP export destination has been increased
to 3500 msec.
Example:
Router(config-flow-export-sctp)# backup fail-over 3500

Step 7 backup restore-time restore-time
The length of time that the router will wait until reverting to the primary SCTP export destination has been increased
to 1500 msecs.

296
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for Two Export Destinations and Two Backup Export Destinations
Example:
Router (config)# backup restore-time 1500

Step 8 end
Example:
Displays the status and statistics for NetFlow SCTP export. Backup mode is fail-over. The association with the SCTP
backup export destination is not active (not connected) because NetFlow SCTP export waits to activate the association
with the backup destination until the primary export destination is no longer available.
Example:

status: connected
backup mode: fail-over
backup: 192.168.247.198, port 200
status: not connected
fail-overs: 0
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for Two Export Destinations and Two
Backup Export Destinations
This configuration is the most basic SCTP export configuration that uses multiple export destinations. You
can configure a maximum of two export destinations for every NetFlow cache.
Each SCTP export destination has its own area in the configuration file for the options that you can
configure for it such as fail-over mode, fail-over timers and reliability. Therefore you must make certain
that the last SCTP export destination that you entered in the routers configuration is the SCTP export
destination that you want to modify.
For example, if you enter these commands in this order:
ip flow-export destination 172.16.12.200 100 sctp
backup destination 192.168.100.2 200
The backup destination 192.168.100.2 200 is assigned to the ip flow-export destination 172.16.45.57
100 sctpcommand.

297
To change the SCTP export destination that you are modifying, reenter the command line for the SCTP
export destination that you want to modify.
data.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
7. end
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Example:
Router> enable
Example:

Example:

Example:

Configures a second export destination using SCTP on port 100.

298
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Fully Reliable and One Partially Reliable Export Destination
Example:

Configures a second SCTP backup destination using SCTP on port 200.
Example:

Step 7 end
Example:
Displays the status and statistics for the two primary and backup NetFlow SCTP export destinations. Reliability is set
to the default of full.
Example:

status: connected
backup: 192.168.247.198, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 0
status: connected
backup: 192.168.100.2, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 1
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for One Fully Reliable and One Partially
Reliable Export Destination
This SCTP export configuration uses two SCTP export destinations. One of the export destinations uses
full reliability and the other export destination uses partial reliability.

299
data.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
5. reliability partial buffer-limit limit
6. end
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Example:
Router> enable
Example:

Example:

Configures a second export destination using SCTP on port 100.
Example:

Step 5 reliability partial buffer-limit limit
Configures partial reliability for this SCTP export destination and sets the packet buffer limit to 3000.

300
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for the NetFlow Source-Prefix Aggregation Cache
Example:
Router(config-flow-export-sctp)# reliability partial buffer-limit 3000

Step 6 end
Example:
Displays the status and statistics for NetFlow export with SCTP. Reliability is set to full for SCTP export destination
172.16.12.200 and to partial SCTP export destination 172.16.45.57.
Example:

status: connected
backup: 192.168.247.198, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 0
IPv4 main cache exporting to 172.16.45.57, port 100, partial
status: connected
backup: 192.168.100.2, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 1
Configuring NetFlow SCTP Export for the NetFlow Source-Prefix

Aggregation Cache
This SCTP export example shows how to configure NetFlow SCTP export for the NetFlow source prefix
aggregation cache. You can configure a maximum of two export destinations for every NetFlow cache.
When you enter NetFlow aggregation cache configuration mode in the router the current router prompt
changes to reflect this mode.
For example, if the current router prompt is, Router(config)# and you enter the ip flow-aggregation cache
prefix command, the router prompt is changed to the NetFlow aggregation cache configuration prompt of
Router(config-flow-cache)#.

301
Prerequisites
You need to pay close attention when you are configuring NetFlow SCTP export options for NetFlow
aggregation caches because the NetFlow aggregation cache configuration prompt is changed to the
NetFlow SCTP export prompt when you enter a NetFlow SCTP export command in NetFlow aggregation
cache configuration mode, even though you are still working in NetFlow aggregation cache configuration
mode.
For example, if your current prompt is the NetFlow aggregation cache configuration prompt,
Router(config-flow-cache)#, and you enter the export destination 172.16.12.200 100 sctp command, the
router prompt will change to the NetFlow SCTP export configuration mode prompt, Router(config-flow-
export-sctp)#. The NetFlow SCTP export commands that you configure are assigned to the NetFlow
aggregation cache that you are modify with NetFlow SCTP export options.
Use the configuration in the Configuration Examples for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP, page 306
to practice using the different configuration modes
Prerequisites, page 302
SCTP Export for NetFlow Aggregation Caches, page 302
Prerequisites
data.
SCTP Export for NetFlow Aggregation Caches

All of the NetFlow SCTP options that are available for the main NetFlow cache are also available in
NetFlow Aggregation cache mode.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-aggregation cache aggregation-cache-type
4. enable
5. export destination [ip-address | hostname] port sctp
6. end
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 enable
Example:
Router> enable

302
Verifying NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP
Example:

Step 3 ip flow-aggregation cache aggregation-cache-type
Enters NetFlow aggregation cache mode for the cache type.
Example:
Router (config)# ip flow-aggregation cache source-prefix

Step 4 enable
Activates the NetFlow aggregation cache.
Example:
Router(config-flow-cache)# enable
Step 5 export destination [ip-address | hostname] port sctp
Configures an export destination using SCTP for the aggregation cache.
Example:
Router (config-flow-cache)# export destination 172.16.12.200 100 sctp

Step 6 end
Example:
Displays the status and statistics for NetFlow export with SCTP.
Example:
source-prefix cache exporting to 172.16.12.200, port 100, full

status: connected
Verifying NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP

The show ip flow export sctp [verbose]command provides information on the status and statistics of the
options that you have configured for the NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP feature.

303
Cisco IOS also provides commands for monitoring and troubleshooting the status and statistics for all of
the SCTP features (including NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP) that you have configured on the
networking device. Refer to the Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) , Release 2 configuration
guide http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/software/ios122/122newft/122t/122t8/ft_sctp2.htm
for more information on interpreting the output from these commands, and the other commands that are
available for monitoring and troubleshooting SCTP.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip sctp association list
2. show ip sctp association parameters association-id
3. show ip sctp errors
4. show ip sctp instances
5. show ip sctp statistics
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 show ip sctp association list

Shows the list of SCTP associations.
Example:
Router# show ip sctp association list

** SCTP Association List **
AssocID: 0, Instance ID: 0
Current state: ESTABLISHED
Local port: 51882, Addrs: 172.16.6.2
Remote port: 100, Addrs: 172.16.12.200
AssocID: 1, Instance ID: 1
Current state: ESTABLISHED
Local port: 59004, Addrs: 172.16.6.2
Remote port: 200, Addrs: 192.168.247.198
Step 2 show ip sctp association parameters association-id
Displays the current parameters for the association ID.
Example:
Router# show ip sctp association parameters 0

** SCTP Association Parameters **
AssocID: 0 Context: 1 InstanceID: 0
Assoc state: ESTABLISHED Uptime: 00:19:44.504
Local port: 51882
Peers Adaption layer indication is NOT set
Local addresses: 172.16.6.2
Remote port: 100
Primary dest addr: 172.16.12.200
Effective primary dest addr: 172.16.12.200
Destination addresses:
172.16.12.200: State: ACTIVE(CONFIRMED)
Heartbeats: Enabled Timeout: 500 ms
RTO/RTT/SRTT: 5000/0/3 ms TOS: 0 MTU: 1500
cwnd: 3000 ssthresh: 9000 outstand: 0
Num retrans: 0 Max retrans: 2 Num times failed: 0
Local vertag: DAF7029F Remote vertag: A3923131
Num inbound streams: 20 outbound streams: 20
Max assoc retrans: 2 Max init retrans: 2
CumSack timeout: 200 ms Bundle timeout: 100 ms

304
Min RTO: 5000 ms Max RTO: 5000 ms

Max Init RTO (T1): 1000 ms
LocalRwnd: 9000 Low: 9000 RemoteRwnd: 9000 Low: 8936
Congest levels: 0 current level: 0 high mark: 1
Step 3 show ip sctp errors
Shows any SCTP errors that have occurred.
Example:
Router# show ip sctp errors

** SCTP Error Statistics **
No SCTP errors logged.
Step 4 show ip sctp instances
Shows the details and status for the SCTP instances.
Example:
Router# show ip sctp instances

** SCTP Instances **
Instance ID: 0 Local port: 51882 State: available
Local addrs: 172.16.6.2
Default streams inbound: 20 outbound: 20
Adaption layer indication is not set
Current associations: (max allowed: 6)
AssocID: 0 State: ESTABLISHED Remote port: 100
Dest addrs: 172.16.12.200
Instance ID: 1 Local port: 59004 State: available
Local addrs: 172.16.6.2
Default streams inbound: 20 outbound: 20
Adaption layer indication is not set
Current associations: (max allowed: 6)
AssocID: 1 State: ESTABLISHED Remote port: 200
Dest addrs: 192.168.247.198
Step 5 show ip sctp statistics
Shows the SCTP overall statistics:
Example:
Router# show ip sctp statistics

** SCTP Overall Statistics **
Control Chunks
Sent: 615 Rcvd: 699
Data Chunks Sent
Total: 57 Retransmitted: 0
Ordered: 57 Unordered: 0
Total Bytes: 3648
Data Chunks Rcvd
Total: 0 Discarded: 0
Ordered: 0 Unordered: 0
Total Bytes: 0
Out of Seq TSN: 0
SCTP Dgrams
Sent: 671 Rcvd: 699
ULP Dgrams
Sent: 57 Ready: 0 Rcvd: 0
Additional Stats
Assocs Currently Estab: 2
Active Estab: 2 Passive Estab: 0
Aborts: 0 Shutdowns: 0
T1 Expired: 1 T2 Expired: 0

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Configuration Examples for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP
Configuration Examples for NetFlow Reliable Export With

SCTP
The following example includes these NetFlow accounting and NetFlow SCTP export features:
NetFlow ingress and egress accounting
Multiple SCTP export destinations for the Main NetFlow cache with backup destinations
Multiple SCTP export destinations for the NetFlow protocol-port aggregation cache using partial
reliability and fail-over mode backup destinations
Multiple SCTP export destinations for the NetFlow bgp-nexthop-tos aggregation cache with reliability
disabled and redundant mode backup destinations
Router# show running-config

.
.
.
ip address 172.16.6.2 255.255.255.0
ip flow ingress
!
!
ip address 172.16.7.1 255.255.255.0
ip flow egress
!
reliability partial buffer-limit 3000
!
!
ip flow-aggregation cache protocol-port
export destination 172.16.12.200 100 sctp
backup mode fail-over
backup mode fail-over
enabled
!
ip flow-aggregation cache bgp-nexthop-tos
export version 9
enabled
!
The display output of the show ip flow export sctp verbose command shows the status and statistics for
this configuration example:

status: connected

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Configuration Examples for NetFlow Reliable Export With SCTP

backup: 192.168.100.2, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 2
status: connected
backup: 192.168.247.198, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 1
protocol-port cache exporting to 172.16.12.200, port 100, partial
status: connected
backup: 192.168.247.198, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 0
protocol-port cache exporting to 172.16.45.57, port 100, partial
status: connected
backup: 192.168.100.2, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 0
bgp-nexthop-tos cache exporting to 172.16.12.200, port 100, full
status: connected
backup: 192.168.247.198, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 0
bgp-nexthop-tos cache exporting to 172.16.45.57, port 100, full
status: connected
backup: 192.168.100.2, port 200
status: connected
fail-overs: 0

307
Related Documents

NetFlow

308
Feature Information for NetFlow Reliable Transport Using SCTP
Standards
Standards Title
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

RFCs
RFC Title
RFC 3954 Cisco Systems NetFlow Services Export Version 9
RFC2690 Stream Control Transmission Protocol
RFC 3578 Stream Control Transmission Protocol-Partial

Reliability Extension
Description Link
content.
Feature Information for NetFlow Reliable Transport Using

SCTP
feature.

309
Glossary
Table 56 Feature Information for NetFlow Reliable Transport Using SCTP

NetFlow Reliable Export With 12.4(4)T The NetFlow Reliable Export
SCTP With SCTP feature provides a
more robust and flexible method
for exporting NetFlow data to
collectors than UDP, which was
the only transport option prior to
the introduction of this feature.
NetFlow Reliable Export With
SCTP has the following benefits:
Backup destinations--You
can configure backup
destinations for every SCTP
export destination. The
backup destinations can use
redundant mode (always
connected) and fail-over
mode (connect as required).
Fail-over mode is more
suitable for backup
destinations that are
reachable over expensive
dial-up links such as ISDN.
Reliability--NetFlow SCTP
provides a very reliable level
of transport that has error
correction and flow control.
You can modify the level of
reliability for each SCTP
export destination depending
on the importance of the data
that you are exporting.
feature: ip flow export, show ip
flow export, and export.
Glossary
BGP --Border Gateway Protocol. Interdomain routing protocol that replaces Exterior Border Gateway
Protocol (EBGP). A BGP system exchanges reachability information with other BGP systems. BGP is
defined by RFC 1163.

310
Glossary
data record --Provides information about an IP flow that exists on the device that produced an export
packet. Each group of data records (meaning each data flowset), refers to a previously transmitted template
ID, which can be used to parse the data within the records.
export packet --A type of packet built by a device (for example, a router) with NetFlow services enabled.
The packet is addressed to another device (for example, the NetFlow Collection Engine). The packet
contains NetFlow statistics. The other device processes the packet (parses, aggregates, and stores
information on IP flows).
fast switching --A Cisco feature in which a route cache is used to expedite packet switching through a
router.
flow --A unidirectional stream of packets between a given source and destination, each of which is defined
by a network-layer IP address and transport-layer source and destination port numbers.
flowset --A collection of flow records that follow the packet header in an export packet. A flowset contains
information that must be parsed and interpreted by the NetFlow Collection Engine. There are two different
types of flowsets: template flowsets and data flowsets. An export packet contains one or more flowsets, and
both template and data flowsets can be mixed in the same export packet.
NetFlow Collection Engine (formerly NetFlow FlowCollector)--A Cisco application that is used with
NetFlow on Cisco routers and Catalyst 5000 series switches. The NetFlow Collection Engine collects
packets from the router that is running NetFlow and decodes, aggregates, and stores them. You can
NetFlow v9 --NetFlow export format Version 9. A flexible and extensible means of carrying NetFlow
options data record --A special type of data record used in the NetFlow process. It is based on an options
template and has a reserved template ID that provides information about the NetFlow process itself.
options template --A type of template record used to communicate the format of data related to the
NetFlow process.
packet header --First part of an export packet. It provides basic information about the packet (such as the
NetFlow version, number of records contained in the packet, and sequence numbering) so that lost packets
can be detected.
SCTP --Stream Control Transmission Protocol. The Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) is a
transport layer protocol defined in 2000 by the IETF Signaling Transport (SIGTRAN) working group. The
protocol is defined in RFC 2960, and an introductory text is provided by RFC 3286.
template flowset --A collection of template records that are grouped in an export packet.
template ID --A unique number that distinguishes a template record produced by an export device from
other template records produced by the same export device. A NetFlow Collection Engine application can
receive export packets from several devices. You should be aware that uniqueness is not guaranteed across

311
export devices. The NetFlow Collection Engine should cache the address of the export device that
produced the template ID in order to enforce uniqueness.
template record --Defines the format of subsequent data records that might be received in current or future
export packets. A template record within an export packet does not necessarily indicate the format of data
records within that same packet. A NetFlow Collection Engine application must cache any template records
received and then parse any data records it encounters by locating the appropriate template record in the
cache.

312
Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With
NetFlow
This document contains information about and instructions for detecting and analyzing network threats
such as denial of service attacks (DoS) through the use of the following NetFlow features:
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports--This feature improves your ability to detect and
analyze network threats such as denial of service attacks (DoS) by adding 9 fields that NetFlow can
capture the values from.A few examples are:
IP Time-to-Live field
Packet length field
ICMP type and code fields
NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI--This feature gives you an overview of the highest volume traffic
in your network by aggregating flows on a common field. For example, you can aggregate all of the
flows for a destination network by aggregating them on the destination prefix. There are over 20
fields from flows that you can aggregate the highest volume traffic on. A few examples are:
Source or destination IP address
Source or destination prefix
Source or destination port
ICMP type and code
NetFlow Top Talkers--This feature gives you a more detailed view of the traffic in your network than
the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature because it looks at individual flows. You use the
NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature to quickly identify high volume traffic of interest. You
use the NetFlow Top Talkers feature to obtain more detailed information on each of the flows in the
high volume traffic.
NetFlow Input Filters--This feature tracks a specific subset of NetFlow traffic for the purpose of
class-based traffic analysis and monitoring. This feature is used in conjunction with the Top Talkers
feature to help you focus your analysis on the traffic that might be a network threat such as a DoS
attack.
Random Sampled NetFlow--This feature is typically used for statistical sampling of network traffic
for traffic engineering or capacity planning purposes. It is used in the context of monitoring and
analyzing network threats because it can be used to reduce the impact on the router using NetFlow to
monitor traffic that might be a network threat, such as a DoS attack.

Prerequisites for Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow, page 314
Information About Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow, page 314
How to Configure and Use NetFlow to Detect and Analyze Network Threats, page 332

313
Configuration Examples for Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow, page 355
Where to Go Next, page 367
Feature Information for Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow, page 369
Glossary, page 371

Prerequisites for Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats

With NetFlow
Before you can use NetFlow for detecting and analyzing network threats you need to understand NetFlow
and how to configure your router to capture IP traffic status and statistics using NetFlow. See the Cisco IOS
NetFlow Overview and Configuring NetFlow and NetFlow Data Export modules for more details.
NetFlow and Cisco Express Forwarding (CEF) or distributed CEF (dCEF) must be configured on your
system before you enable NetFlow.
Information About Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats

With NetFlow
NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring, page 244
NetFlow Top Talkers, page 326
Filtering and Sampling of NetFlow Traffic, page 329

The Layer 2 and Layer 3 fields supported by the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature
increase the amount of information that can be obtained by NetFlow about the traffic in your network. You
can use the network traffic information for applications such as traffic engineering and usage-based billing.
Layer 3 fields captured by the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature improve the
capabilities of NetFlow for identifying DoS attacks. Layer 2 IP header fields help identify the path that the
DoS attack is taking through the network.
Layer 2 and Layer 3 fields are not key fields. They provide additional information about the traffic in an
existing flow. Changes in the values of NetFlow key fields, such as the source IP address, from one packet
to the next packet results in the creation of a new flow. For example, if the first packet captured by

314
Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow
Information About Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow
NetFlow has a source IP address of 10.34.0.2 and the second packet captured has a source IP address of
172.16.213.65, NetFlow will create two separate flows.
Most DoS attacks consist of an attacker sending the same type of IP datagram repeatedly, in an attempt to
overwhelm target systems. In such cases, the incoming traffic often has similar characteristics, such as the
same values in each datagram for one or more fields that the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring
Exports feature can capture.
The originator of DoS attacks cannot be easily identified because the IP source address of the device
sending the traffic is usually forged. However, you can easily trace the traffic back through the network to
the router on which it is arriving by using the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature to
capture the MAC address and VLAN-ID fields. If the router on which traffic is arriving supports NetFlow,
you can configure the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature on it to identify the
interface on which the traffic is arriving. The figure below shows an example of an attack in progress.
Figure 33 DoS Attack Arriving over the Internet
Note You can analyze the data captured by NetFlow directly from the router by using the show ip cache verbose
flow command or by the Cisco Network Services (CNS) NetFlow Collector Engine.
Once you have concluded that a DoS attack is taking place by analyzing the Layer 3 fields in the NetFlow
flows, you can analyze the Layer 2 fields in the flows to discover the path that the DoS attack is taking
through the network.
An analysis of the data captured by the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature, for the
scenario shown in the above figure, indicates that the DoS attack is arriving on Router C, because the
upstream MAC address is from the interface that connects Router C to Switch A. It is also evident that
there are no routers between the target host (the e-mail server) and the NetFlow router, because the
destination MAC address of the DoS traffic that the NetFlow router is forwarding to the e-mail server is the
MAC address of the e-mail server.

315
You can learn the MAC address that Host C is using to send traffic to Router C by configuring the NetFlow
Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature on Router C. The source MAC address will be from Host
C. The destination MAC address will be for the interface on the NetFlow router.
Once you know the MAC address that Host C is using and the interface on Router C on which Host Cs
DoS attack is arriving, you can mitigate the attack by reconfiguring Router C to block Host Cs traffic. If
Host C is on a dedicated interface, you can disable the interface. If Host C is using an interface that carries
traffic from other users, you must configure your firewall to block Host Cs traffic, but still allow the traffic
from the other users to flow through Router C.
The five fields that the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature captures from Layer 3 IP
traffic in a flow are the following:
Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) type and code
ID field
Fragment offset
Packet length field
Time-to-live field
Figure 5 shows the fields in an IP packet header.
Figure 34 IP Packet Header Fields
Table 4 describes the header fields in Figure 5.
Table 57 IP Packet Header Fields
Field Description
Version The version of the IP protocol. If this field is set to 4, it is an IPv4
datagram. If this field is set to 6, it is an IPv6 datagram.
Note IPv4 and IPv6 headers have different structures.

316
Field Description
IHL (Internet Header Length) Internet Header Length is the length of the Internet header in 32-bit
word format and thus points to the beginning of the data.
Note The minimum value for the correct header length is 5.
ToS Type of service (ToS) provides an indication of the abstract parameters

of the quality of service desired. These parameters are to be used to
guide the selection of the actual service parameters when a networking
device transmits a datagram through a particular network.
Total Length Total length is the length of the datagram, measured in octets, including
Internet header and data.
Identification (ID) The value in the ID field is entered by the sender. All the fragments of
an IP datagram have the same value in the ID field. Subsequent IP
datagrams from the same sender will have different values in the ID
field.
Frequently, a host receives fragmented IP datagrams from several
senders concurrently. Also, frequently a host receives multiple IP
datagrams from the same sender concurrently.
The value in the ID field is used by the destination host to ensure that
the fragments of an IP datagram are assigned to the same packet buffer
during the IP datagram reassembly process. The unique value in the ID
field is used to prevent the receiving host from mixing together IP
datagram fragments of different IP datagrams from the same sender
during the IP datagram reassembly process.
Flags A sequence of three bits is used to set and track IP datagram

fragmentation parameters. The bits are:
001The IP datagram can be fragmented. More fragments of the
current IP datagram are in transit.
000The IP datagram can be fragmented. This is the last fragment
of the current IP datagram.
010The IP datagram cannot be fragmented. This is the entire IP
datagram.
Fragment Offset This field indicates where in the datagram this fragment belongs.
TTL (Time-to-Live) This field indicates the maximum time the datagram is allowed to
remain in the Internet system. If this field contains the value 0, then the
datagram must be destroyed. This field is modified in Internet header
processing. The TTL is measured in units of seconds, but because every
module that processes a datagram must decrease the TTL by at least 1
even if it processes the datagram in less than a second, the TTL must be
thought of only as an upper bound on the time a datagram can exist. The
intention is to discard undeliverable datagrams and bound the maximum
datagram lifetime.

317
Field Description
Protocol Indicates the type of transport packet included in the data portion of the
IP datagram. Common values are:
1ICMP
6TCP
17UDP
Header checksum A checksum on the header only. Because some header fields, such as the
TTL field, change every time an IP datagram is forwarded, this value is
recomputed and verified at each point that the Internet header is
processed.
Source IP Address IP address of the sending station.
Destination IP Address IP address of the destination station.
Options and Padding The options and padding may appear in datagrams. If they do appear,
they must be implemented by all IP modules (host and gateways).
Options and padding are always implemented in any particular
datagram; transmissions are not.
Figure 6 shows the fields in an ICMP datagram.
Figure 35 ICMP Datagram
Table 5 interprets the packet format in the figure seen above. ICMP datagrams are carried in the data area
of an IP datagram, after the IP header.
Table 58 ICMP Packet Format
Type Name Codes

0 Echo reply 0None.
1 Unassigned
2 Unassigned

318
Type Name Codes

3 Destination unreachable 0Network unreachable.
1Host unreachable.
2Protocol unreachable.
3Port unreachable.
4Fragmentation needed and don't fragment (DF)
bit set.
5Source route failed.
6Destination network unknown.
7Destination host unknown.
8Source host isolated.
9Communication with the destination network is
10Communication with the destination host is
11Destination network unreachable for ToS.
12Destination host unreachable for ToS.
4 Source quench 0None.
5 Redirect 0None.
0Redirect datagram for the network.
1Redirect datagram for the host.
2Redirect datagram for the ToS and network.
3Redirect datagram for the ToS and host.
6 Alternate host address 0Alternate address for the host.
7 Unassigned
8 Echo 0None.
9 Router advertisement 0None.
10 Router selection 0None.
11 Time exceeded 0Time to live exceeded in transit.
12 Parameter problem 0Pointer indicates the error.

1Missing a required option.
2Inappropriate length.
13 Timestamp 0None.
14 Timestamp reply 0None.

319
Type Name Codes

15 Information request 0None.
16 Information reply 0None.
17 Address mask request 0None.
18 Address mask reply 0None.
19 Reserved (for security)
2029 Reserved (for robustness

experiment)
30 Trace route
31 Datagram conversion error
32 Mobile host redirect
33 IPv6 where-are-you
34 IPv6 I-am-here
35 Mobile registration request
36 Mobile registration reply
37255 Reserved
The NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature can capture the values of the MAC address
and VLAN ID fields from flows. The two supported VLAN types are 802.1q and the Cisco Inter-Switch
Link (ISL) protocol.

The Layer 2 fields for which the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature captures the
values are as follows:
The source MAC address field from frames that are received by the NetFlow router.
The destination MAC address field from frames that are transmitted by the NetFlow router.
The VLAN ID field from frames that are received by the NetFlow router.
The VLAN ID field from frames that are transmitted by the NetFlow router.

320
Figure 2 shows the Ethernet Type II and Ethernet 802.3 frame formats. The destination address field and
the source address field in the frame formats are the MAC address values that are captured by NetFlow.
Figure 36 Ethernet Type II and 802.3 Frame Formats
Table 1 explains the fields for the Ethernet frame formats.
Table 59 Ethernet Type II and 802.3 Frame Fields
Field Description
Preamble The entry in the Preamble field is an alternating pattern of 0s and 1s that
communicates to receiving stations about an incoming frame. It also
provides a means for the receiving stations to synchronize their clocks with
the incoming bit stream.
SOF (Start of frame) The SOF field holds an alternating pattern of 0s and 1s, ending with two
consecutive 1s, indicating that the next bit is the first bit of the first byte of
the destination MAC address.
Destination Address The 48-bit destination address identifies which station on the LAN should
The remaining 46 bits form a uniquely assigned value that identifies a single
station, a defined group of stations, or all stations on the network.
Type TypeIn an Ethernet Type II frame, a part of the frame is used for the Type
field. The Type field is used to identify the next layer protocol in the frame.
or
Length

321
Field Description
or or
Sequence) created by the sending station and is recalculated by the receiving station, to
check for damaged frames. The FCS is generated for the destination

NetFlow can capture the value in the VLAN ID field for 802.1q tagged VLANs and Cisco ISL
encapsulated VLANs. This section describes the two types of VLANs, 802.1q and ISL.
Note ISL and 802.1q are commonly called VLAN encapsulation protocols.
Understanding 802.1q VLANs

Devices that use 802.1q insert a four-byte tag into the original frame before it is transmitted. Figure 3
shows the format of an 802.1q tagged Ethernet frame.
Figure 37 802.1q Tagged Ethernet Type II or 802.3 Frame

322
Table 60 802.1q VLAN Encapsulation Fields
Field Description
Destination Address The 48-bit destination address identifies which stations on the LAN should
The remaining 46 bits form a uniquely assigned value that identifies a
single station, a defined group of stations, or all stations on the network.
Type TypeIn an Ethernet Type II frame, a part of the frame is used for the
Type field. The Type field is used to identify the next layer protocol in the
or
frame.
Length

or or
Sequence) created by the sending station and is recalculated by the receiving station,
to check for damaged frames. The FCS is generated for the destination
Tag Protocol ID (TPID) This 16-bit field is set to a value of 0x8100 to identify the frame as an IEEE
802.1q tagged frame.
Priority This 3-bit field refers to the 802.1p priority. It is also known as user
priority. It indicates the frame priority level used for prioritizing traffic and
can represent levels 07.
Tag Control Information This 2-byte Tag Control Information field consists of the following two
subfields:
Canonical Format Indentifier (CFI)If the value of this 1-bit field is
1, the MAC address is in noncanonical format. If the value of this field
is 0, the MAC address is in canonical format.
VLAN IDThis 12-bit field uniquely identifies the VLAN to which
the frame belongs. It can have a value from 0 to 4095.

323
Cisco ISL VLANs

ISL is a Cisco-proprietary protocol for encapsulating frames on a VLAN trunk. Devices that use ISL add an
ISL header to the frame. This process is known as VLAN encapsulation. 802.1Q is the IEEE standard for
tagging frames on a VLAN trunk. Figure 4 shows the format of a Cisco ISL-encapsulated Ethernet frame.
Figure 38 Cisco ISL Tagged Ethernet Frame
Table 61 ISL VLAN Encapsulation
Field Description
DA (destination address) This 40-bit field is a multicast address and is set at
0n01-00-0c-00-00 or 0n03-00-0c-00-00. The
receiving host determines that the frame is
encapsulated in ISL by reading the 40-bit DA field
and matching it with one of the two ISL multicast
addresses.
TYPE This 4-bit field indicates the type of frame that is

encapsulated and to indicate alternative
encapsulations.
TYPE codes:
0000Ethernet
0001Token Ring
0010FDDI
0011ATM
USER This 4-bit field is used to extend the meaning of the

Frame TYPE field. The default USER field value is
0000. For Ethernet frames, the USER field bits 0
and 1 indicate the priority of the packet as it passes
through the switch. Whenever traffic can be
handled more quickly, the packets with this bit set
should take advantage of the quicker path.
However, such paths are not required.
USER codes:
xx00Normal priority
xx01Priority 1
xx10Priority 2
xx11Highest priority

324
Field Description
SA This 48-bit field is the source address field of the
ISL packet. It should be set to the 802.3 MAC
address of the switch port transmitting the frame.
The receiving device can ignore the SA field of the
frame.
LEN This 16-bit value field stores the actual packet size
of the original packet. The LEN field represents the
length of the packet in bytes, excluding the DA,
TYPE, USER, SA, LEN, and FCS fields. The total
length of the excluded fields is 18 bytes, so the
LEN field represents the total length minus 18
bytes.
AAAA03(SNAP) The AAAA03 Subnetwork Access Protocol

(SNAP) field is a 24-bit constant value of
0xAAAA03.
HSA This 24-bit field represents the upper three bytes

(the manufacturers ID portion) of the SA field. It
must contain the value 0x00-00-0C.
VLAN This 15-bit field is the virtual LAN ID of the

packet. This value is used to mark frames on
different VLANs.
BPDU The bit in the bridge protocol data unit (BPDU)

field is set for all BPDU packets that are
encapsulated by the ISL frame. The BPDUs are
used by the spanning tree algorithm to learn
information about the topology of the network. This
bit is also set for Cisco Discovery Protocol and
VLAN Trunk Protocol (VTP) frames that are
encapsulated.
INDEX This 16-bit field indicates the port index of the

source of the packet as it exits the switch. It is used
for diagnostic purposes only, and may be set to any
value by other devices. It is ignored in received
packets.
RES This 16-bit field is used when Token Ring or FDDI

packets are encapsulated with an ISL frame.
Encapsulated FRAME This field contains the encapsulated Layer 2 frame.

325
NetFlow Top Talkers
Comparison of the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI and NetFlow Top Talkers Features
Field Description
FCS The FCS field consists of 4 bytes. It includes a 32-
bit CRC value, which is created by the sending
station and is recalculated by the receiving station,
to check for damaged frames. The FCS covers the
DA, SA, Length/Type, and Data fields. When an
ISL header is attached to a Layer 2 frame, a new
FCS is calculated over the entire ISL packet and
added to the end of the frame.
Note The addition of the new FCS does not alter
the original FCS that is contained within the
encapsulated frame.
NetFlow Top Talkers

The usual implementation of NetFlow exports NetFlow data to a collector. The NetFlow Top Talkers
features can be used for security monitoring or accounting purposes for top talkers, and matching and
identifying key traffic in your network. These features are also useful for a network location where a
traditional NetFlow export operation is not possible. The NetFlow Top Talkers features do not require a
collector to obtain information regarding flows. Instead, the NetFlow data is displayed on the router when
the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI show ip flow top command, or the NetFlow Top Talkers show ip
flow top-talkersis used.
Comparison of the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI and NetFlow Top Talkers Features, page 326
Comparison of the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI and NetFlow Top Talkers Features
There are two very similar NetFlow features that can be used for monitoring the highest volume traffic in
your network. The feature names are:
NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI, page 326
NetFlow Top Talkers, page 329
NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI

This feature was introduced in 12.4(4)T. The NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature is used to obtain
an overview of the highest volume traffic (top talkers) in your network. It provides an overview of the
traffic by aggregating the flows in the cache based on the aggregation field that you select when you use the
NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature.
The NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature does not require modifications to the configuration of the
router. The show ip flow top command is the only command that you need to use for the NetFlow
Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature. You can invoke any of the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI options
directly from the show ip flow top command whenever you need them.

326
Note The information that you want to use the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature to analyze must be
available in the cache. For example, if you want to be able to identify the MAC address in the flows, you
must configure the ip flow-capture mac-addresses command in order to capture the values from the MAC
address fields in the traffic first.
The NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature aggregates flows and allows them to be sorted so that they
can be viewed. The flows can be aggregated on fields in the cache such as source or destination IP address,
ICMP type and code values, and so forth. For a full list of the fields that you can aggregate the flows on,
refer to the show ip flow topcommand in the Cisco IOS NetFlow command reference documentation.
The aggregated top talker flows can be sorted by any of the following criteria:
The aggregated field in the display data
The number of bytes in the display data
The number of flows in the display data
The by number of packets in the display data
In ascending or descending order (to find the least used Top talker)
In addition to sorting top talkers, you can further organize your output by specifying criteria that the top
talkers must match, such as source or destination IP address or port. The match keyword is used to specify
this criterion. For a full list of the matching criterion that you can select, refer to the show ip flow
topcommand in the Cisco IOS NetFlow command reference documentation.
The NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature can help you quickly identify traffic that is associated with
security threats such as DoS attacks because it does not require configuration modifications. You can
change the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI options for identifying and analyzing network threats in the
aggregated flows on-the-fly as you learn more about the traffic that is of interest. For example, after you
have identified that there is a lot of ICMP traffic in your network by using the show ip flow top 10
aggregate icmp command you can learn what IP networks the traffic is being sent to by using the show ip
flow top 10 aggregate icmp match destination-prefix 172.0.0.0/8 command.
Note A high volume of ICMP traffic might indicate that an ICMP-based DoS attack is in progress.
The show ip flow top command:

Does not require additional NetFlow configuration commands to display top talkers. Therefore you do
not need to supply the configuration mode password to the administrators who use the he show ip flow
top command to monitor network traffic. The only prerequisite for using the show ip flow top
command is that you have configured NetFlow on at least one interface on the router.
Aggregates flows automatically based on the aggregation method that you select, and independently of
any netflow aggregation cache(s).
Allows you to change the parameters of the command, such as the number of flows to display, the
display order, and match criterion, on-the-fly every time that you use the command without having to
change the routers configuration.
Allows you to sort the display output in ascending or descending order based on:
The aggregated field
The number of bytes
The number of flows,
The number of packets

327
show ip flow top and show ip cache verbose flow

Many of the values shown in the display output of the show ip cache verbose flow command are in
hexadecimal. If you want to match these values using the show ip flow top command with the match
keyword, you must enter the field value that you want to match in hexadecimal. For example, to match on
the destination port of 00DC in the following except from the show ip cache verbose flow command, you
would use the match destination-port 0x00DC keywords and argument for the show ip flow top
command.

Et0/0.1 10.10.11.4 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.8 06 00 00 209
00DC /0 0 00DC
/0 0 0.0.0.0 40 281.4
IP id: 0
Match Criteria with the show ip flow top command

You can limit the top talkers that are displayed by the show ip flow top command by using the match
keyword and arguments. For example, you can display the IP destination address top talkers that have a
prefix of 224.0.0.0 using the show ip flow top 10 aggregate destination-address match destination-
prefix 224.0.0.0/3 command.
For a full list of the matching criterion that you can select, refer to the show ip flow topcommand in the
Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference . If you do not configure match criteria all of the flows are
considered as candidates for aggregation as top talkers based on the volume of traffic they represent.
The Order That Aggregation Occurs in

With the exception of the flows keyword, all matches are performed prior to aggregation, and only
matching flows are aggregated. For example, the show ip flow top5aggregate destination-address match
destination-prefix 172.16.0.0/16 command analyzes all of the available flows looking for any flows that
have destination addresses that match the destination-prefix value of 172.16.0.0/16. If it finds any matches
it aggregates them, and then displays the number of aggregated destination-address flows that is equal to
the number of top talkers that were requested in the command-in this case five.
The flows keyword matches the number of aggregated flows post-aggregation. For example, the show ip
flow top 2 aggregate destination-address match 6 command aggregates all of the flows on the values in
their destination IP address field, and then displays the top talkers that have 6 aggregated flows.
Number of Flows Matched

If you do not specify match criteria and there is traffic in the flows that includes the field that you used to
aggregate the flows on, all of the flows will match. For example, if your router has 20 flows with IP traffic
and you enter the show ip flow top 10 aggregate destination-address command the display will indicate
that 20 of 20 flows matched, and the 10 top talkers will be displayed.
If you use the match keyword to limit the flows that are aggregated to the flows with a destination prefix of
224.0.0.0/3, and only one flow matches this criterion the output will indicate that one out of six flows
matched. For example, if your router has 6 flows with IP traffic, but only one of them has a destination
prefix of 224.0.0.0/3, and you enter the show ip flow top 10 aggregate destination-address match
destination-prefix 224.0.0.0/3 command, the display will indicate that 1 of 6 flows matched.
If the total number of top talkers is less than the number of top talkers that were requested in the command,
the total number of top talkers is displayed. For example, if you enter a value of five for the number of top

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NetFlow Top Talkers
talkers to display and there are only three top talkers that match the criteria that you used, the display will
only include three top talkers.
When a match criterion is included with the show ip flow top command, the display output will indicate
"N of M flows matched" where N <= M, N = matched flows, and M = total flows seen. The numbers of
flows seen could potentially be more than the total number of flows in the cache if some of the analyzed
flows were removed from the cache and new flows were created ahead of the current point, as the top
talkers feature sweeps through the cache. Therefore, M is NOT the total number of flows in the cache, but
rather, the number of observed flows.
If you attempt to display the top talkers by aggregating them on a field that is not in the cache you will see
the "% aggregation-field" is not available for this cache" message. For example, if you use the show ip
flow top 5 aggregate s ource-vlan command, and you have not enabled the capture of VLAN IDs from the
flows, you will see the "% VLAN id is not available for this cache" message.
NetFlow Top Talkers

This feature was introduced in 12.3(11)T. NetFlow Top Talkers is used to obtain information about
individual flows in the cache. It does not aggregate the flows like the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI
feature.
The NetFlow Top Talkers feature compares all of the flows and displays information about each of the
flows that have the heaviest traffic volumes (top talkers). The show ip flow top-talkerscommand requires
you to pre-configure the router using the NetFlow Top Talkers configuration commands:
ip flow-top-talkers --Enters the NetFlow Top Talkers configuration mode.
sort-by --Selects the sort order for the flows in the display output.
bytes--Sort the flows based on the numbers of bytes in each flow.
packets--Sort the flows based on the numbers of packets in each flow.
top --Specifies the number of top talkers to monitor.
match (optional)--Specifies additional criteria, such as IP addresses, port numbers, and so forth, that
must be matched in the flow to qualify as a candidate for top talker status.
For a full list of the matching criterion that you can select, refer to the ip flow top-talkerscommand in the
Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference . If you do not configure match criteria all of the flows are
considered as candidates as top talkers based on the volume of traffic they represent.
show ip flow top talkers [verbose]--Displays the flows.
For more information on the NetFlow Top Talkers feature, refer to Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers using
Cisco IOS CLI Commands or SNMP Commands.

NetFlow provides highly granular per-flow traffic statistics in a Cisco router. A flow is a unidirectional
stream of packets that arrive at the router on the same subinterface, have the same source and destination IP
addresses, Layer 4 protocol, TCP/UDP source and destination ports, and the same ToS (type of service)
byte in the IP headers. The router accumulates NetFlow statistics in a NetFlow cache and can export them
to an external device (such as the Cisco Networking Services (CNS) NetFlow Collection Engine) for
further processing.
Full NetFlow accounts for all traffic entering the subinterface on which it is enabled. But in some cases,
you might gather NetFlow data on only a subset of this traffic. The Random Sampled NetFlow feature and
the NetFlow Input Filters feature each provide ways to limit incoming traffic to only traffic of interest for
NetFlow processing. Random Sampled NetFlow provides NetFlow data for a subset of traffic in a Cisco

329
NetFlow Top Talkers
router by processing only one randomly selected packet out of n sequential packets. The NetFlow Input
Filters feature provides the capability to gather NetFlow data on only a specific user-defined subset of
traffic.
Note Random Sampled NetFlow is more statistically accurate than Sampled NetFlow. NetFlow's ability to
sample packets was first provided by a feature named Sampled NetFlow. The methodology that the
Sampled NetFlow feature uses is deterministic sampling, which selects every nth packet for NetFlow
processing on a per-interface basis. For example, if you set the sampling rate to 1 out of 100 packets, then
Sampled NetFlow samples the 1st, 101st, 201st, 301st, and so on packets. Sampled NetFlow does not allow
random sampling and thus can make statistics inaccurate when traffic arrives in fixed patterns.
Note The Random Sampled NetFlow algorithms are applied after input filtering.
The table below compares the NetFlow Input Filters feature and the NetFlow Random Sampled feature.
Table 62 Comparison of the NetFlow Input Filters Feature and the Random Sampled NetFlow Feature
Brief description This feature enables you to gather This feature provides NetFlow data for a
NetFlow data on only a specific subset of subset of traffic in a Cisco router by
traffic. You do this by creating filters to processing only one randomly selected
select flows for NetFlow processing. For packet out of n sequential packets (n is a
example, you can select flows from a user-configurable parameter). Packets are
specific group of hosts. This feature also sampled as they arrive (before any
lets you select various sampling rates for NetFlow cache entries are made for those
selected flows. packets).
Main uses You can use this feature for class-based You can use this feature for traffic
traffic analysis and monitoring on- engineering, capacity planning, and
network or off-network traffic. applications where full NetFlow is not
This feature is also useful if you have too needed for an accurate view of network
traffic.
much traffic and you want to limit the
traffic that is analyzed. This feature is also useful if you have too
much traffic and you want to limit the
traffic that is analyzed.
Export format support This feature is supported in the Version 5 This feature is supported in the Version 5
and Version 9 NetFlow export formats. and Version 9 NetFlow export formats.
Cisco IOS release support 12.3(4)T. 12.3(2)T, 12.2(18)S, and 12.0(26)S.

330
Subinterface support You can configure NetFlow Input Filters You can configure the Random Sampled
per subinterface as well as per physical NetFlow feature per subinterface as well
interface. as per physical interface.
You can select more than one filter per You can not run Full NetFlow and
subinterface and have all of the filters run Random Sampled NetFlow concurrently
simultaneously. on the same subinterface. You must
disable full NetFlow on the subinterface
before Random Sampled NetFlow will
take effect.
Traffic is collected only on the
subinterfaces on which Random Sampled
NetFlow is configured. As with full
NetFlow, enabling Random Sampled
NetFlow on a physical interface does not
enable Random Sampled NetFlow on
subinterfaces automatically--you must
explicitly configure it on the
subinterfaces.
Memory impact This feature requires no additional This feature can create a smaller NetFlow
memory. It allows you to use a smaller cache than full NetFlow if by reducing
NetFlow cache than full NetFlow, the number of packets being analyzed the
because it significantly reduces the numbers of flows in the cache is also
number of flows. This feature requires an reduced. This feature requires an
insignificant amount of memory for each insignificant amount of memory for each
configured NetFlow filter. configured NetFlow sampler.
Performance impact Accounting of classified traffic saves Statistical traffic sampling substantially
router resources by reducing the number reduces consumption of router resources
of flows being processed and exported. (especially CPU resources) while
The amount of bandwidth saved depends providing valuable NetFlow data.
on the usage and the class-map criteria.
This feature substantially reduces the
However, performance might degrade impact of NetFlow data export on
depending on the number and complexity interface traffic. For example, a sampling
of class maps configured in a policy. rate of 1 out of 100 packets reduces the
export of NetFlow data by about 99%
percent.
NetFlow Input Filters Flow Classification, page 331

Random Sampled NetFlow Sampling Mode, page 332
Random Sampled NetFlow The NetFlow Sampler Map, page 332

For the NetFlow Input Filters feature, classification of packets can be based on any of the following: IP
source and destination addresses, Layer 4 protocol and port numbers, incoming interface, MAC address, IP
Precedence, DSCP value, Layer 2 information (such as Frame-Relay DE bits or Ethernet 802.1p bits), and

331
Network-Based Application Recognition (NBAR) information. The packets are classified (filtered) on the
above criteria, and flow accounting is applied to them on subinterfaces.
The filtering mechanism uses the Modular QoS Command-Line Interface (MQC) to classify flows. You
can create multiple filters with matching samplers on a per-subinterface basis. For example, you can
subdivide subinterface traffic into multiple classes based on type of service (ToS) values or destination
prefixes (or both). For each class, you can also configure sampling at a different rate, using higher rates for
higher-priority classes of traffic and lower rates for lower-priority ones.
MQC has many policies (actions) such as bandwidth rate and queuing management. These policies are
applied only if a packet matches a criterion in a class map that is applied to the subinterface. A class map
contains a set of match clauses and instructions on how to evaluate the clauses and acts as a filter for the
policies, which are applied only if a packets content satisfies the match clause. The NetFlow Input Filters
feature adds NetFlow accounting to the MQC infrastructure, which means that flow accounting is done on a
packet only if it satisfies the match clauses.
Two types of filter are available:
ACL-based flow-mask filters
Fields of filter (source IP address, destination IP address, source application port, destination
application port, port protocol, ToS bits, and TCP flags)
For more information on Modular QoS Command-Line Interface (MQC) refer to the Cisco IOS Quality of
Service Solutions Configuration Guide .

Sampling mode makes use of an algorithm that selects a subset of traffic for NetFlow processing. In the
random sampling mode that the Random Sampled NetFlow feature uses, incoming packets are randomly
selected on average one out of each n sequential packets is selected for NetFlow processing. For example,
if you set the sampling rate to 1 out of 100 packets, then NetFlow might sample the 5th packet and then the
120th, 230th, 302nd, and so on. This sample configuration provides NetFlow data on 1 percent of total
traffic. The n value is a parameter that you can configure from 1 to 65535 packets.
Random Sampled NetFlow The NetFlow Sampler Map

Random Sampled NetFlow is useful if you have too much traffic and you want to limit the traffic that is
analyzed. A NetFlow sampler map is created with the flow-sampler-map sampler-map-name command.
The sampling mode for the sampler map is configured with the mode random one-out-of sampling-rate
command. The range of values for the sampling-rate argument is 1 to 65535. Each NetFlow sampler map
can be applied to one or many subinterfaces as well as physical interfaces. The sampler map is applied to
an interface or subinterface with the flow-sampler sampler-map-name command. You can define up to
eight NetFlow sampler maps.
How to Configure and Use NetFlow to Detect and Analyze

Network Threats
Using NetFlow to detect and analyze network threats requires a combination of configuration commands
and show commands. You start by configuring the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports
feature to capture values of the additional non-key fields from the flows so that they can be displayed in the
cache by the NetFlow show commands. Capturing the values in the additional non-key fields is required so

332
Prerequisites
How to Configure and Use NetFlow to Detect and Analyze Network Threats
that you can identify the path the traffic is taking through the network and other characteristics of the traffic
such as TTL values and packet length values.
After you configure the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature, you use the NetFlow
Dynamic Top Talkers CLI command to obtain an overview of the traffic flows the router is forwarding.
The overview displays information such as the protocol distribution in the flows, the source ip addresses
that are sending the flows, and the networks the flows are being sent to.
After you identify the type of flows that you want to focus, on such as ICMP traffic, and other
characteristics such as source IP addresses and destination network prefixes, you use the NetFlow Top
Talkers feature to obtain more focused and detailed information on the individual flows. The NetFlow Top
Talkers feature is configured with match criteria that focuses it on the types of traffic that you have
identified. If your router is keeping track of several flows and you are only interested in analyzing a subset
of them you, can configure NetFlow Input Filters to limit the flows that NetFlow is tracking.
Prerequisites, page 333
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 333
Verifying NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports, page 336
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Protocol Distribution, page 338
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Source IP Address Top Talkers Sending
ICMP Traffic, page 339
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Destination IP Address Top Talkers
Receiving ICMP Traffic, page 341
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers to Monitor Network Threats, page 343
Monitoring and Analyzing the NetFlow Top Talkers Flows, page 344
Configuring NetFlow Filtering and Sampling, page 347
Verify NetFlow Filtering and Sampling, page 353
Monitoring and Analyzing the Sampled and Filtered NetFlow Top Talkers Flows, page 353
Prerequisites
CEF or dCEF must be configured globally, and on the interface that you want to run NetFlow on, before
you configure NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports.
You must have NetFlow enabled on at least one interface in the router before you configure NetFlow Layer
2 and Security Monitoring Exports.
If you want to capture the values of the Layer 3 IP fragment offset field from the IP headers in your IP
traffic using the ip flow-capture fragment-offset command, your router must be running Cisco IOS
12.4(2)T or later.
This section contains the following procedures:

Perform the following task to configure the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports feature.
To export the data captured with the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring feature, you must configure
NetFlow to use the NetFlow Version 9 data export format.

333
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
3. ip flow-capture fragment-offset
4. ip flow-capture icmp
5. ip flow-capture ip-id
6. ip flow-capture mac-addresses
7. ip flow-capture packet-length
8. ip flow-capture ttl
9. ip flow-capture vlan-id
10. interface type interface-type interface-number ]
11. ip flow ingress
12. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 ip flow-capture fragment-offset Enables capturing the value of the IP fragment offset field from
the first fragmented IP datagram in a flow.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-capture fragment-offset
Step 4 ip flow-capture icmp Enables you to capture the value of the ICMP type and code
fields from the first ICMP datagram in a flow.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-capture icmp

334

Step 5 ip flow-capture ip-id Enables you to capture the value of the IP-ID field from the
first IP datagram in a flow.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-capture ip-id
Step 6 ip flow-capture mac-addresses Enables you to capture the values of the source and destination
MAC addresses from the first Layer 2 frame in a flow.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-capture mac-addresses
Step 7 ip flow-capture packet-length Enables you to capture the minimum and maximum values of
the packet length field from IP datagrams in a flow.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-capture packet-length
Step 8 ip flow-capture ttl Enables you to capture the minimum and maximum values of
the Time-to-Live (TTL) field from IP datagrams in a flow.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-capture ttl
Step 9 ip flow-capture vlan-id Enables you to capture the 802.1q or ISL VLAN-ID field from
first VLAN encapsulated Layer 2 frame in a flow that is
received or transmitted on a trunk port.
Example:
Router(config)# ip flow-capture vlan-id
Step 10 interface type interface-type interface-number ] Enters interface configuration mode for the type of interface
specified in the command.
Example:

335
Restrictions

Step 11 ip flow ingress Enables ingress NetFlow data collection on the interface.
and/or
Example: Enables egress NetFlow data collection on the interface.
and/or
Example:
ip flow egress
Example:
Example:
and/or
Example:
Step 12 end Returns to privileged EXEC mode.
Example:
Router(config)# end

This task verifies that NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports is configured correctly. The show
ip cache verbose flowcommand gives a detailed view of the status and statistics for flows in the NetFlow
main cache. The values for the NetFlow non-key fields that you have configured with the NetFlow Layer 2
and Security Monitoring Exports feature are included for each flow.
To see the values of the fields that you have configured the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring
Exports feature to capture, your router must be forwarding IP traffic that meets the criteria for these fields.
For example, if you configure the ip flow-capture vlan-id command, your router must be forwarding IP
datagrams over interfaces that are configured as VLAN trunks to capture the VLAN-ID values from the
layer-two frames carrying the IP datagrams in the flow.
Restrictions, page 336
Restrictions

336
Restrictions
Displaying Detailed NetFlow Cache Information on Platforms Running Distributed Cisco Express
Forwarding
On platforms running dCEF, NetFlow cache information is maintained on each line card or Versatile
Interface Processor. If you want to use the show ip cache verbose flow command to display this
information on a distributed platform, you must enter the command at a line card prompt.
To display detailed NetFlow cache information on a Cisco 7500 series router that is running distributed
dCEF, enter the following sequence of commands:
Router# if-con
slot-number
LC-
slot-number
# show ip cache verbose
flow
For Cisco IOS Releases 12.3(4)T, 12.3(6), and 12.2(20)S and later, enter the following command to display
detailed NetFlow cache information:
Router# execute-on
slot-number
show ip cache verbose
flow

To display detailed NetFlow cache information on a Cisco 12000 Series Internet Router, enter the
following sequence of commands:
Router# attach
slot-number
LC-
slot-number
# show ip cache verbose
flow
For Cisco IOS Releases 12.3(4)T, 12.3(6), and 12.2(20)S and later, enter the following command to display
detailed NetFlow cache information:
Router# execute-on slot-number show ip cache verbose flow
To verify the configuration of NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports use the following step.
SUMMARY STEPS
DETAILED STEPS
show ip cache verbose flow

This example shows that NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports is working properly because the values
have been captured from the non-key Layer 3 and Layer 2 fields in the flows. The values captured in the flows are
shown in bold text.

337
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Protocol Distribution
Restrictions
Example:

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.856 .143 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
TCP-SMTP 2 0.0 1730 40 3.6 600.7 0.2
UDP-other 31 0.0 1 54 0.0 3.6 16.8
ICMP 12 0.0 1728 28 22.0 600.1 0.1
Total: 45 0.0 538 29 25.7 189.2 11.6
.
.
.
Et0/0.1 10.71.200.138 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 696
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 241.4
IP id: 0
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Protocol Distribution
You can obtain a quick overview of the traffic in your network by viewing the protocol distribution. Use
this task to display the top talkers (aggregated flows) for these three IPv4 protocol types:
1--ICMP
6--TCP
17--UDP
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip flow top number aggregate aggregate-field sorted-by packets descending
DETAILED STEPS
show ip flow top number aggregate aggregate-field sorted-by packets descending

The following example looks for up to three top talkers, aggregates them on the protocol field, sorts them by packets,
and displays the output in descending order:

338
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Source IP Address Top Talkers Sending ICMP Traffic
Restrictions
Example:
Router# show ip flow top 3 aggregate protocol sorted-by packets descending
There are 3 top talkers:

IPV4 PROT bytes pkts flows
========= ========== ========== ==========
1 406196 14507 12
6 96560 2414 2
17 52 1 1
15 of 15 flows matched.
The table below describes the significant fields shown in the display output.
Table 63 show ip flow top 3 aggregate protocol sorted-by packets descending Field Descriptions
Field Description
There are 3 top talkers The number of top talkers is displayed.
IPV4 PROT This position in the display output is used to show the
field that you selected to aggregate the flows on.
The protocol keyword aggregates IPv4 traffic in the
flows based on the IPv4 protocol type. In this example
there are three IPv4 protocol types in the flows:
1--ICMP
6--TCP
17--UDP
bytes Displays the numbers of bytes in the aggregated flows

for each top talker.
pkts Displays the numbers of packets in the aggregated flows

flows Displays the numbers of aggregated flows for each top

talker.
15 of 15 flows matched. Displays the number of flows that matched the

command.
All 15 flows in the router are aggregated into three top talkers. In this example all of the flow traffic is top talker
traffic.
The majority of the traffic is ICMP traffic (IP protocol type 1). This might indicate an ICMP DoS attack is in
progress.
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Source IP Address
Top Talkers Sending ICMP Traffic
The display output from the show ip flow top 10 aggregate protocol sorted-by packets descending used
in Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Protocol Distribution, page 338 section

339
Restrictions
indicates that there is a possible ICMP-based DoS attack in progress. The next step to take is to identify the
flows that are sending the ICMP traffic. In this case the flows will be aggregated on the source IP
addresses.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip flow top number aggregate aggregate-field sorted-by packets match match-field match-
value
DETAILED STEPS
show ip flow top number aggregate aggregate-field sorted-by packets match match-field match-value
The following command looks for up to 20 top talkers, aggregates them on the source IP address, sorts them by
packets, and matches on the protocol icmp:
Example:
Router# show ip flow top 20 aggregate source-address sorted-by packets match protocol icmp
IPV4 SRC-ADDR bytes pkts flows
=============== ========== ========== ==========
10.132.221.111 90440 3230 1
10.10.12.1 90440 3230 1
10.251.138.218 90440 3230 1
10.71.200.138 90384 3228 1
10.231.185.254 90384 3228 1
10.106.1.1 90356 3227 1
Router
The table below describes the significant fields shown in the display.
Table 64 show ip flow top 20 aggregate source-address sorted-by packets match protocol icmp Field Descriptions
Field Description
There are 6 top talkers The number of top talkers is displayed.
Note Only 6 top talkers are displayed, even though you
asked for 20, because only 6 of the 15 flows in the
cache matched the criteria you specified. The
number 20 is an upper limit that will be applied in
the event that there are over 20 top talkers.

340
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Destination IP Address Top Talkers Receiving ICMP Traffic
Restrictions
Field Description
IPV4 SRC-ADDR This position in the display output is used to show the
The source-addresskeyword aggregates flows based on
the source IP address. In this example there are 6 IP
source addresses with aggregated flows. Each of the IP
addresses has 1 flow, therefore no aggregation was
performed:
10.132.221.111
10.10.12.1
10.251.138.218
10.71.200.138
10.231.185.254
10.106.1.1



talker.
6 of 15flows matched. Displays the number of flows that matched the

command.
The ICMP traffic is aggregated into six top talkers (source IP addresses). Each top talker has one flow. No aggregation
is performed on this traffic because there is a 1-to-1 correlation of IP source addresses and flows.
Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Destination IP

Address Top Talkers Receiving ICMP Traffic
The display output from the show ip flow top 5 aggregate source-address sorted-by packets match
protocol icmp command used in Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Source IP
Address Top Talkers Sending ICMP Traffic, page 339 section showed the six top talkers (IP source
addresses) that are sending the 12 ICMP traffic flows. The next step to take is to identify the flows that are
the target of the ICMP traffic. In this case the flows will be aggregated on the destination IP addresses.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip flow top number aggregate aggregate-field sorted-by packets match match-field match-
value

341
Restrictions
DETAILED STEPS
show ip flow top number aggregate aggregate-field sorted-by packets match match-field match-value
The following command looks for up to 20 top talkers, aggregates them on the destination IP address, sorts them by
packets, and matches on the protocol icmp
Example:
Router# show ip flow top 20 aggregate destination-address sorted-by packets match protocol icmp
There is 1 top talker:
IPV4 DST-ADDR bytes pkts flows
=============== ========== ========== ==========
172.16.10.2 407456 14552 6
Router
The table below describes the significant fields shown in the display.
Table 65 show ip flow top 20 aggregate destination-address sorted-by packets match protocol icmp Field Descriptions
Field Description
There is 1 top talker The number of top talkers is displayed.
The ICMP traffic is aggregated into 6 flows for one
destination IP addresses.
IPV4 DST-ADDR This position in the display output is used to show the
The destination-addresskeyword aggregates flows
based on the destination IP address. In this example there
are 3 IP destination address with aggregated flows. The
IP addresses has 8 aggregated flows:
172.16.10.2



talker.
6 of 14 flows matched. Displays the number of flows that matched the

command.
The previous task identified six ICMP top talkers based on source IP addresses that each had one flow. This task
identified that there is one ICMP top talker based on destination IP addresses that is the target for 6 individual flows.
There is a 1-to-1 correlation between the number of ICMP flows in the top talkers aggregated on the source IP address
and the number of ICMP flows in the top talkers aggregated on the destination IP address. There is a high probability
that an ICMP-based DoS attack on the host with the IP address of 172.16.10.2 is in progress.

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Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers to Monitor Network Threats
Restrictions
Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers to Monitor Network Threats

The previous task (Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI to Display the Destination IP Address Top
Talkers Receiving ICMP Traffic) identified a probable ICMP-based DoS attack on the host with the IP
address 172.16.10.2. This task uses the NetFlow Top Talkers feature to configure the router to monitor the
DoS attack by tracking the individual ICMP flows. After you have configured the NetFlow Top Talkers
feature to focus on the DoS attack traffic, you can use the show ip flow top-talkers verbose command to
identify the path the DoS traffic is taking through the network.
Perform the following task to configure the NetFlow Top Talkers feature.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
4. match destination address ip-address /prefix-mask
5. top number
6. sort-by [bytes | packets
7. end
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 ip flow-top-talkers Enters NetFlow top talkers configuration mode.
Example:

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Monitoring and Analyzing the NetFlow Top Talkers Flows
Restrictions

Step 4 match destination address ip-address /prefix-mask Specifies the destination IP addresses to match.
Example:
Router(config-flow-top-talkers)
# match destination address 172.16.10.2/32
Step 5 top number Specifies the maximum number of top talkers that will be
retrieved by a NetFlow top talkers query.
Example:
Router(config-flow-top-talkers)# top 50
Step 6 sort-by [bytes | packets Specifies the sort criterion for the top talkers.
The top talkers can be sorted either by the total number of
packets of each top talker or the total number of bytes of
Example:
each top talker.
Router(config-flow-top-talkers)# sort-by packets
Step 7 end Exits to privileged EXEC mode.
Example:
Router(config-flow-top-talkers)# end
Monitoring and Analyzing the NetFlow Top Talkers Flows

To monitor and analyze the NetFlow Top Talkers flows, use the following step.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip flow top-talkers verbose
DETAILED STEPS
show ip flow top-talkers verbose

The following sample shows details for the six traffic flows that are being sent to the host with IP address 172.16.10.2.
Example:
Router# show ip flow top-talkers verbose

SrcIf SrcIPaddress DstIf DstIPaddress Pr TOS Flgs Bytes
Et0/0.1 10.106.1.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 9408
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 116.3

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Restrictions

IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.132.221.111 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 9408
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 116.4
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.10.12.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 9408
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 116.4
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.251.138.218 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 9408
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 116.4
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.71.200.138 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 9408
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 116.5
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.231.185.254 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 9408
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 116.5
IP id: 0
6 of 50 top talkers shown. 6 of 8 flows matched.
Note Only six of the eight flows matched because the rest of the flows are not top talker flows.
Note The top 50 flows were requested, however there are only eight flows in the cache.
This display output contains the information required for determining the path that the DoS attack traffic is taking
through the network. This information will be used to react to the DoS attack by adding security measures such as
access-lists to the affected interfaces. The table below describes the significant fields in the display from the show ip
flow top-talkers verbose command for determining the network path the DoS traffic is taking.
Table 66 Significant Field Descriptions for show ip flow top-talkers verbose
Field Description
All of the ICMP DoS traffic is being received on
Et0/0.1

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Restrictions
Field Description
SrcIPaddress This is the source IP address of the traffic in the six top
talkers. The traffic is using 6 different IP source
addresses
10.132.221.111
10.10.12.1
10.251.138.218
10.71.200.138
10.231.185.254
10.106.1.1
DstIf Interface from which the packet was transmitted.

All of the ICMP DoS traffic is being transmitted
over Et1/0.1
Note If an asterisk (*) immediately follows the DstIf
field, the flow being shown is an egress flow.
ICMP Type The ICMP datagram types

8--Echo
12--Parameter Problem
ICMP Code The ICMP codes

0--None (not applicable)
1--Depends on the ICMP Type
A code value of 1 for ICMP type 12 indicates
that a required option is missing
DstIPaddress This is the destination IP address of the traffic.

Note 172.17.10.2 is the IP address that is being
attacked.
MAC These are the source and destination MAC addresses

from the traffic. The source and destination MAC
address are read from left to right in the output.
The traffic is being received from MAC address
aaa.bbb.cc03.
Note This MAC address is interface 1/0.1 on router R2.
The traffic is being transmitted to MAC address

aaa.bbb.cc06.
Note This MAC address is interface 1/0.1 on router R4.

346
Configuring NetFlow Filtering and Sampling
Restrictions
Field Description
VLAN id These are the source and destination VLAN IDs. The
source and destination VLAN IDs are read from left to
right in the output.
The traffic is being received from VLAN 5.
The traffic is being transmitted to VLAN 6.
The flows in this example show only the ICMP DoS attack traffic that is destined for the host with IP address
172.16.10.2. These flows were created specifically for documenting this task. In a real network, the host under attack
might be communicating with other hosts that are using legitimate applications such as e-mail and web sites. In this
case, the Top Talkers match filter on the destination IP address (match destination address 172.16.10.2/32) that was
configured in the Configuring NetFlow Top Talkers to Monitor Network Threats, page 343 will not limit the display
of the show ip flow top-talkers command to the ICMP DoS attack traffic.
Note For more information on the fields in the display output of the show ip cache verbose flow command, refer to
the Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference .
If you are using the Top Talkers feature to analyze a network threat and you are not able to use the basic match filters
to limit the display of the show ip flow top-talkers command to the traffic that you are analyzing, you can use
NetFlow filtering and sampling to limit the traffic that shows up in the display of the show ip flow top-talkers
command. The process for configuring NetFlow filtering and sampling is explained in the Configuring NetFlow
Filtering and Sampling, page 347.
Configuring NetFlow Filtering and Sampling

If you use the show ip cache flow command or the show ip cache verbose flow command to display the
flows in the cache, you will see the ICMP flows that are selected by NetFlow filtering and sampling on
interface Ethernet0/0.1, and flows for all NetFlow supported traffic types on any other interfaces that
NetFlow is running on. The show ip flow top-talkers [verbose] command is used to display the flow
status and statistics for the traffic type you configured with the match criteria over interfaces to which you
applied the service policy. For example, in this case you configured top talkers to match on ICMP traffic
sent from any host that is arriving on Ethernet0/0.1 and destined for 172.16.10.2.
In this task the Top Talkers feature is being used more as a flow filter to separate flows of interest from all
of the flows the router is seeing, rather than a filter to display the flows with the highest traffic volumes.
Top talkers is used in this manner because in this example all of the ICMP DoS attack flows are of interest,
not just the flows with the highest volumes. This is why a large value is assigned to the top keyword in the
top talkers configuration. Setting the value for the top keyword to 50 when the largest number of ICMP
DoS attack flows tracked by the router is 12 ensures that all of the ICMP DoS attack flows will be tracked.
If your router sees a significant number of flows involved in a DoS attack, you might want to set the value
for the top keyword to a number that is less than the total number of flows to limit the number of flows that
you see in the display when you use the show ip flow top-talkerscommand. This will ensure that you are
seeing the flows that have the highest volume of DoS attack traffic. However, if all of the flows have the
same traffic volume, the show ip flow top-talkerscommand will not be able to differentiate between them.
It displays the number of flows that you set the value of the top keyword to, starting from the first flow in
the cache.
Perform the following task to configure NetFlow Filtering and sampling.

347
Restrictions
Note Restrictions for NetFlow Input Filters

On Cisco 7500 platforms, the NetFlow Input Filters feature is supported only in distributed mode.
Restrictions for Random Sampled NetFlow
If full NetFlow is enabled on an interface, it takes precedence over Random Sampled NetFlow (which will
thus have no effect). Disable full NetFlow on an interface before enabling Random Sampled NetFlow on
that interface.
Enabling Random Sampled NetFlow on a physical interface does not automatically enable Random
Sampled NetFlow on subinterfaces; you must explicitly configure it on subinterfaces. Also, disabling
Random Sampled NetFlow on a physical interface (or a subinterface) does not enable full NetFlow. This
restriction prevents the transition to full NetFlow from overwhelming the physical interface (or
subinterface). If you want full NetFlow, you must explicitly enable it.
You must use NetFlow Version 9 if you want to use sampler option templates or view NetFlow sampler
IDs.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. enable
5. exit
6. class-map class-map-name [match-all | match-any]
7. match access-group access-group
8. exit
9. policy-map policy-map-name
10. class { class-name | class-default}
11. netflow-sampler sampler-map-name
12. exit
13. exit
14. interface interface-type interface-number [.subinterface number]
15. no [ip route-cache flow | ip flow ingress]
16. service-policy {input | output} policy-map-name
17. exit
19. top number
20. sort-by packets
21. match class-map claas-name
22. no match destination address ip-address /prefix-mask
23. exit
24. access-list access-list-number permit icmp source destination
25. end

348
Restrictions
DETAILED STEPS

Example:
Router> enable
Example:
Step 3 flow-sampler-map sampler-map-name Defines a statistical sampling NetFlow export flow sampler map.
The sampler-map-name argument is the name of the flow sampler map
to be defined.
Example:
Entering the flow-sampler-map command enables the flow sampler
icmp-dos-fs-map configuration mode.
Step 4 mode random one-out-of packet- Specifies a statistical sampling NetFlow export random sampling mode and a
interval packet interval.
The random keyword specifies that sampling uses the random sampling
mode.
Example:
The one-out-of packet-interval argument-keyword pair specifies the
Router(config-sampler-map)# mode packet interval (one out of every npackets) from which to sample. For n,
random one-out-of 2 you can specify from 1 to 65535 (packets).
Step 5 exit Exits back to global configuration mode.
Example:

349
Restrictions

Step 6 class-map class-map-name [match-all | Creates a class map to be used for matching packets to a specified class.
match-any]
The class-map-name argument is the name of the class for the class
map. The name can be a maximum of 40 alphanumeric characters. The
class name is used for both the class map and for configuring policy for
Example:
the class in the policy map.
Router(config)# class-map match- The match-all | match-anykeywords determine how packets are
any icmp-dos-class-map evaluated when multiple match criteria exist. Packets must either meet
all of the match criteria (match-all) or only one of the match criteria
(match-any) to be considered a member of the class.
Entering the class-mapcommand enables class-map configuration mode, in
which you can enter one of the match commands to configure the match
criteria for this class.
Step 7 match access-group access-group Configures the match criteria for a class map on the basis of the specified
access control list (ACL).
The access-group argument is a numbered ACL whose contents are
Example:
used as the match criteria against which packets are checked to
Router(config-cmap)# match access- determine if they belong to this class. An ACL number can be a number
group 101 from 1 to 2699.
Example:
Router(config-cmap)# exit
Step 9 policy-map policy-map-name Creates or modifies a policy map that can be attached to one or more
interfaces to specify a service policy.
The policy-map-name argument is the name of the policy map. The
Example:
name can be a maximum of 40 alphanumeric characters.
Router(config)# policy-map icmp-
dos-policy-map Entering the policy-mapcommand enables quality of service (QoS) policy-
map configuration mode, in which you can configure or modify the class
policies for that policy map
Step 10 class { class-name | class-default} Specifies the name of the class whose policy you want to create or change or
specifies the default class (commonly known as the class-default class)
before you configure its policy.
Example:
The class-name argument is the name of the class for which you want to
Router(config-pmap)# class icmp- configure or modify policy.
dos-class-map The class-default keyword specifies the default class so that you can
configure or modify its policy.
Entering the class command enables QoS policy-map class configuration
mode.

350
Restrictions

Step 11 netflow-sampler sampler-map-name Enables a NetFlow input filter sampler.
The sampler-map-name argument is the name of the NetFlow sampler
map to apply to the class.
Example:
You can assign only one NetFlow input filter sampler to a class. Assigning
Router(config-pmap-c)# netflow-
sampler icmp-dos-fs-map another NetFlow input filter sampler to a class overwrites the previous one.
Step 12 exit Exits back to policy-map configuration mode.
Example:
Router(config-pmap-c)# exit
Example:
Router(config-pmap# exit
Step 14 interface interface-type interface-number Specifies the interface and enters subinterface configuration mode.
[.subinterface number]
The interface-type argument is the type of interface to be configured.
The interface-numberargument is the number of the interface. Refer to
Example: the appropriate hardware manual for slot and port information.
Router(config)# interface
Ethernet0/0.1
Step 15 no [ip route-cache flow | ip flow Removes the existing NetFlow command from the interface.
ingress] Note NetFlow sampling and filtering can not start if there is another
command on the interface that is enabling NetFlow.
Example:
Router(config-subif)# no ip flow
ingress
Step 16 service-policy {input | output} policy- Attaches a policy map to an input interface or virtual circuit (VC), or an
map-name output interface or VC, to be used as the service policy for that interface or
VC.
The input keyword attaches the specified policy map to the input
Example:
interface or input VC.
Router(config-subif)# service- The output keyword attaches the specified policy map to the output
policy input icmp-dos-policy-map
interface or output VC.
The policy-map-name is the name of a service policy map (created
through use of the policy-map command) to be attached. The name can
be a maximum of 40 alphanumeric characters.

351
Restrictions

Example:
Router(config-subif)# exit
Step 18 ip flow-top-talkers Enters NetFlow top talkers configuration mode.
Example:
Step 19 top number Specifies the maximum number of top talkers that will be retrieved by a
NetFlow top talkers query.
Example:
Router(config-flow-top-talkers)#
top 50
Step 20 sort-by packets Specifies the sort criterion for the top talkers.
The top talkers can be sorted either by the total number of packets of
each top talker or the total number of bytes of each top talker.
Example:
sort-by packets
Step 21 match class-map claas-name Specifies that the match criteria should be obtained from the class-map.
Example:
match class-map icmp-dos-class-map
Step 22 no match destination address ip- (Optional) If you still have a match entry for the destination address you
address /prefix-mask should remove it so that only the class-name match criteria is used.
Example:
no match destination address
172.16.10.2/32
Example:

352
Verify NetFlow Filtering and Sampling
Restrictions

Step 24 access-list access-list-number permit Creates an extended access list that is used to track any host that is sending
icmp source destination ICMP traffic to 172.16.10.2.
Example:
Router(config)# access-list 101

permit icmp any host 172.16.10.2
Step 25 end Exits to privileged EXEC mode.
Example:
Router(config)# end
Verify NetFlow Filtering and Sampling

To verify that filtering and sampling is working properly, use the following step.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show flow-sampler
DETAILED STEPS
show flow-sampler
Any non-zero value in the display output below indicates that Filtering and sampling is active.
Example:
Sampler : icmp-dos-fs-map, id : 1, packets matched : 63226, mode : random sampling mode

Router
Monitoring and Analyzing the Sampled and Filtered NetFlow Top Talkers
Flows
To monitor and analyze the filtered and sampled NetFlow top talkers flows use the following step.
SUMMARY STEPS
1. show ip flow top-talkers
2. show ip flow top-talkers verbose

353
Restrictions
DETAILED STEPS
Step 1 show ip flow top-talkers

The following sample output shows the six traffic flows that are being sent to the host with IP address 172.16.10.2.
Example:
Router# show ip flow top-talkers
SrcIf SrcIPaddress DstIf DstIPaddress Pr SrcP DstP Bytes
Et0/0.1 10.231.185.254 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 0000 0C01 5460
Et0/0.1 10.106.1.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 0000 0800 5124
Et0/0.1 10.132.221.111 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 0000 0800 5012
Et0/0.1 10.251.138.218 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 0000 0C01 4844
Et0/0.1 10.10.12.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 0000 0C01 4704
Et0/0.1 10.71.200.138 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 0000 0C01 4396
Step 2 show ip flow top-talkers verbose
The following sample output below shows the details for the six traffic flows that are being sent to the host with IP
address 172.16.10.2.
Example:
Router# show ip flow top-talkers verbose
SrcIf SrcIPaddress DstIf DstIPaddress Pr TOS Flgs Bytes

Et0/0.1 10.106.1.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 2884
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 64.6
Sampler: 1 Class: 1
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.132.221.111 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 2828
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 64.6
Sampler: 1 Class: 1
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.231.185.254 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 2716
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 64.6
Sampler: 1 Class: 1
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.71.200.138 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 2548
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 58.0
Sampler: 1 Class: 1
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.251.138.218 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 2436
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 64.6
Sampler: 1 Class: 1

354
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Sec Mon Exports to Capture Traffic From a Simulated FTP Attack Example
Configuration Examples for Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow

IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.10.12.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 2352
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 28 57.7
Sampler: 1 Class: 1
IP id: 0
Configuration Examples for Detecting and Analyzing Network

Threats With NetFlow
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Sec Mon Exports to Capture Traffic From a Simulated FTP Attack
Example, page 355
Analyze an FTP DoS Attack Using the show ip cache verbose flow command Example, page 357
Analyze an FTP DoS Attack Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI Example, page 359
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Sec Mon Exports to Capture Traffic From a Simulated ICMP
Attack Example, page 361
Analyze an ICMP Ping DoS Attack Using the show ip cache verbose flow command Example, page
363
Analyze an ICMP Ping DoS Attack Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI Example, page 365
Configure NetFlow Filtering and Sampling Example, page 366
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Sec Mon Exports to Capture Traffic From a
Simulated FTP Attack Example
find out whether your network is being attacked by a host that is sending fake FTP traffic in an attempt to
overwhelm the FTP server. This attack might cause end users to see a degradation in the ability of the FTP
server to accept new connections or to service existing connections.
This example uses the network shown in the figure below. Host A is sending fake FTP packets to the FTP
server.

355
This example also shows you how to use the Layer 2 data captured by the NetFlow Layer 2 and Security
Monitoring Exports feature to learn where the traffic is originating and what path it is taking through the
network.
Tip Keep track of the MAC addresses and IP addresses of the devices in your network. You can use them to
analyze attacks and to resolve problems.
Note This example does not include the ip flow-capture icmpcommand that captures the value of the ICMP
type and code fields. The use of the ip flow-capture icmp command is described in "Configuring NetFlow
Layer 2 and Sec Mon Exports to Capture Traffic From a Simulated ICMP Attack Example, page 361."
R2
!
hostname R2
!
ip address 172.16.1.2 255.255.255.0
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.6.1 255.255.255.0
!
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
R3

356
Analyze an FTP DoS Attack Using the show ip cache verbose flow command Example
hostname R3
!
ip flow-capture ttl
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.6.2 255.255.255.0
ip flow ingress
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.7.1 255.255.255.0
ip flow egress
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
R4
!
hostname R4
!
ip address 172.16.10.1 255.255.255.0
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.7.2 255.255.255.0
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
Analyze an FTP DoS Attack Using the show ip cache verbose flow command
Example
The show ip cache verbose flow command displays the NetFlow flows. You can use this display output to
identify the path that the FTP traffic from Host A is taking as it is received and transmitted by R3.

357
Note To reduce the space required to display the output from the show ip flow cache verbose flowcommand
only the FTP flows are shown.
Tip Look for the flows that have FTP in them and make a note of the interfaces, MAC addresses, and VLANs
(if applicable) for the flows.

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.043 .610 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .173 .000 .173 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
TCP-FTP 12 0.0 895 40 0.9 1363.8 5.5
TCP-FTPD 12 0.0 895 40 0.9 1363.8 5.6
Total: 590 0.0 317 383 16.1 430.1 12.4
Et0/0.1 192.168.87.200 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 00 00 63
0015 /0 0 0015
/0 0 0.0.0.0 40 94.5
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 192.168.87.200 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 00 00 63
0014 /0 0 0014
/0 0 0.0.0.0 40 94.5
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.10.10.2 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 00 00 64
0015 /0 0 0015
/0 0 0.0.0.0 40 96.0
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.10.10.2 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 00 00 64
0014 /0 0 0014
/0 0 0.0.0.0 40 96.0
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.234.53.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 00 00 63
0015 /0 0 0015
/0 0 0.0.0.0 40 94.5
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.234.53.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 00 00 63

358
Analyze an FTP DoS Attack Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI Example
0014 /0 0 0014
/0 0 0.0.0.0 40 94.5
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 172.30.231.193 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 00 00 63
0015 /0 0 0015
/0 0 0.0.0.0 40 94.5
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 172.30.231.193 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 06 00 00 63
0014 /0 0 0014
/0 0 0.0.0.0 40 94.5
IP id: 0
There are 8 FTP flows shown in the output. You can use the Layer 2 information in the flows that is
captured by the ip flow-capture command to identify the path the traffic is taking through the network. In
this example, the traffic is being sent to R3 on VLAN 5 by R2. You can demonstrate that R2 is transmitting
the traffic over interface 1/0.1 because the source MAC address (aaaa.bbb.cc03) belongs to 1/0.1 on R2.
You can demonstrate that R3 is transmitting the traffic using VLAN 6 on interface 1/0.1 to interface 1/0.1
on R4, because the destination MAC address (aaaa.bbbb.cc06) belongs to interface 1/0.1 on R4.
Note For more information on the ip flow-capture command, and the fields in the display output of the show ip
cache verbose flow command, refer to the Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference .
You can use this information to mitigate this attack. One possible way to mitigate this attack is by
configuring an extended IP access list that blocks all FTP traffic from the source IP addresses that Host A is
spoofing and applying it Ethernet 0/0 on R2.
Analyze an FTP DoS Attack Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI
Example
You can use the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature to quickly identify the FTP top talkers in the
network traffic that might be sending the traffic. This will show you the IP source addresses that Host A is
using as it sends the DoS attack traffic.
R3# show ip flow top 50 aggregate source-address sorted-by bytes descending match
destination-port min 20 max 21
=============== ========== ========== ==========
10.231.185.254 5640 141 2
10.132.221.111 3680 92 2
10.10.12.1 3640 91 2
10.251.138.218 3600 90 2
10.71.200.138 1880 47 1
Note Only source IP addresses from FTP traffic are shown because of the match destination-port min 20 max
21 criteria. The source addresses are aggregated together so only the most relevant sources are shown.

359
Note Only nine of the 34 flows matched because the rest of the flows are not FTP flows, therefore they do not
meet the match criteria (match destination-port min 20 max 21).
Tip The top talkers are displayed in descending order of the aggregated field by default.
Tip You can enter the port numbers in their decimal values as shown, or in their hexadecimal equivalents of
0x14 and 0x15.
After you have identified FTP top talkers traffic you need to identify the source IP addresses of IP traffic
that is being sent to the host that you believe is under attack.
R3# show ip flow top 50 aggregate source-address match destination-prefix 172.16.10.2/32

=============== ========== ========== ==========
10.251.138.218 6642 18 4
10.231.185.254 5068 28 4
10.132.221.111 14818 25 4
10.106.1.1 12324 12 2
10.71.200.138 12564 18 3
10.10.12.1 560 14 2
Tip You can specify the host that you believe is under attack by using a prefix value of 32 with the match
destination-prefix command.
Note Only 19 of the 33 flows matched because the rest of the flows do not contain traffic that is destined for the
host with the IP address of 172.16.10.2, therefore they do not meet the match criteria (match destination-
prefix 172.16.10.2/32).
The final step is to cross reference the source IP addresses of any hosts that are sending any IP traffic to the
host under attack with the list of source IP addresses from the FTP top talkers. This is required because the
show ip flow top command does not support multiple match criteria. Therefore you cannot limit the top
talkers to FTP traffic being sent to a specific host with a single show ip flow top command (match
destination-port min 20 max 21 <and> match destination-prefix 172.16.10.2/32).
The host with the IP address of 10.106.1.1 is apparently not involved in this DoS attack because it is not in
the display output from the show ip flow top 50 aggregate source-address sorted-by bytes descending
match destination-port min 20 max 21 command. This means that it is not sending FTP traffic to the host
that is under attack.
Therefore the host IP addressees involved in this FTP DoS attack are likely to be:
10.231.185.254
10.132.221.111
10.10.12.1
10.251.138.218

360
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Sec Mon Exports to Capture Traffic From a Simulated ICMP Attack Example
10.71.200.138
Now that you know the source addresses of the FTP traffic you can configure an extended access list that
blocks FTP traffic from these address, and apply it to the interface that is closest to the point the traffic is
entering your network.
Note Unless you recognize that some of the source IP addresses are not legitimate IP addresses for your network
it might not be possible to identify legitimate FTP traffic from FTP DoS attack traffic.
Configuring NetFlow Layer 2 and Sec Mon Exports to Capture Traffic From a
Simulated ICMP Attack Example
find out that your network is being attacked by ICMP traffic. It uses the network shown in the figure below.
Host A is sending ICMP ping packets to the FTP server.
Tip Keep track of the MAC addresses and IP addresses of the devices in your network. You can use them to
analyze attacks and to resolve problems.
R2
!
hostname R2
!
ip address 172.16.1.2 255.255.255.0
!
no ip address
!

361
ip address 172.16.6.1 255.255.255.0

!
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
R3
!
hostname R3
!
ip flow-capture ttl
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.6.2 255.255.255.0
ip flow ingress
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.7.1 255.255.255.0
ip flow egress
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!
R4
!
hostname R4
!
ip address 172.16.10.1 255.255.255.0
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.7.2 255.255.255.0
!
router rip
version 2
network 172.16.0.0
no auto-summary
!

362
Analyze an ICMP Ping DoS Attack Using the show ip cache verbose flow command Example
Analyze an ICMP Ping DoS Attack Using the show ip cache verbose flow
command Example
The show ip cache verbose flow command displays the NetFlow flows. You can use this display output to
identify the path that the ICMP traffic from Host A is taking as it is received and transmitted by R3.
Note To reduce the space required to display the output from the show ip flow cache verbose flowcommand
only the ICMP flows are shown.
Tip Look for the flows that have ICMP in them and make a note of the interfaces, MAC addresses, and VLANs
(if applicable) for the flows.

1-32 64 96 128 160 192 224 256 288 320 352 384 416 448 480
.065 .665 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
512 544 576 1024 1536 2048 2560 3072 3584 4096 4608
.000 .000 .134 .000 .134 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000 .000
ICMP 27 0.0 1131 763 3.9 1557.4 3.6
Total: 380 0.0 267 257 13.0 382.8 12.6
Et0/0.1 10.106.1.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 864
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 1500 1089.9
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.71.200.138 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 00 864
0000 /0 0 0000 /0 0 0.0.0.0 554 1090.0
IP id: 0 FO: 185
Et0/0.1 10.231.185.254 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 00 864
0000 /0 0 0000 /0 0 0.0.0.0 554 1090.0
IP id: 0 FO: 185
Et0/0.1 10.10.12.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.200 01 00 00 864
0000 /0 0 0000 /0 0 0.0.0.0 554 1090.0

363
IP id: 0 FO: 185

Et0/0.1 10.132.221.111 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 864
0000 /0 0 0800 /0 0 0.0.0.0 1500 1089.9
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.251.138.218 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 00 864
0000 /0 0 0000 /0 0 0.0.0.0 554 1089.9
IP id: 0 FO: 185
Et0/0.1 10.10.12.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.200 01 00 10 864
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 1500 1090.0
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.106.1.1 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 00 864
0000 /0 0 0000 /0 0 0.0.0.0 554 1089.9
IP id: 0 FO: 185
Et0/0.1 10.251.138.218 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 864
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 1500 1089.9
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.71.200.138 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 864
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 1500 1090.0
IP id: 0
Et0/0.1 10.132.221.111 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 00 864
0000 /0 0 0000 /0 0 0.0.0.0 554 1089.9
IP id: 0 FO: 185
Et0/0.1 10.231.185.254 Et1/0.1 172.16.10.2 01 00 10 864
0000 /0 0 0C01 /0 0 0.0.0.0 1500 1090.0
IP id: 0
There are 12 ICMP flows shown in the output. You can use the Layer 2 information in the flows that is
captured by the ip flow-capture command to identify the path the traffic is taking through the network. In
this example, the traffic is being sent to R3 on VLAN 5 by R2. You can demonstrate that R2 is transmitting
the traffic over interface 1/0.1 because the source MAC address (aaaa.bbb.cc03) belongs to 1/0.1 on R2.
You can demonstrate that R3 is transmitting the traffic using VLAN 6 on interface 1/0.1 to interface 1/0.1
on R4, because the destination MAC address (aaaa.bbbb.cc06) belongs to interface 1/0.1 on R4.

364
Analyze an ICMP Ping DoS Attack Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI Example
Note For more information on the ip flow-capture command, and the fields in the display output of the show ip
cache verbose flow command, refer to the Cisco IOS NetFlow Command Reference .
You can use this information to mitigate this attack. One possible way to mitigate this attack is by
configuring an extended IP access list that blocks all ICMP traffic from the source IP addresses that Host A
is spoofing and applying it Ethernet 0/0 on R2.
Analyze an ICMP Ping DoS Attack Using NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI
Example
You can use the NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers CLI feature to quickly identify the ICMP top talkers in the
network traffic that might be sending the traffic. This will show you the IP source addresses that Host A is
using as it sends the DoS attack traffic.
R3# show ip flow top 50 aggregate icmp

ICMP TYPE ICMP CODE bytes pkts flows
========= ========= ========== ========== ==========
12 1 2466000 1644 4
8 0 1233000 822 2
0 0 1366164 2466 6
Note Only 12 of the 25 flows matched because the rest of the flows are not ICMP flows.
Tip The top talkers are displayed in descending order of the aggregated field by default.
After you have identified the ICMP types and code values in the network traffic, you need to determine the
source IP addresses for the ICMP traffic that being sent to the FTP server.
R3# show ip flow top 50 aggregate source-address match icmp type 12 code 1
=============== ========== ========== ==========
10.251.138.218 867000 578 1
10.231.185.254 865500 577 1
10.71.200.138 865500 577 1
10.10.12.1 867000 578 1
Note Only source IP addresses from ICMP traffic are shown because of the match icmp type 12 code 1 criteria.
No aggregation is performed on the source IP addresses because there is only one flow for IP each address.
Note Only four of the 24 flows matched because the rest of the flows did not meet the match criteria (match
icmp type 12 code 1).

365
Configure NetFlow Filtering and Sampling Example

=============== ========== ========== ==========
10.132.221.111 1095000 730 1
10.106.1.1 1095000 730 1
Note Only two of the 24 flows matched because the rest of the flows did not meet the match criteria (match
icmp type 8 code 0).
=============== ========== ========== ==========
10.251.138.218 416608 752 1
10.231.185.254 416608 752 1
10.132.221.111 416608 752 1
10.106.1.1 416608 752 1
10.71.200.138 416608 752 1
10.10.12.1 416608 752 1
Note Only six of the 24 flows matched because the rest of the flows did not meet the match criteria (match icmp
type 0 code 0).
The next step is to create a list of the source IP addresses that Host A is using.
10.251.138.218
10.231.185.254
10.71.200.138
10.10.12.1
10.132.221.111
10.106.1.1.
Now that you know the source addresses of the ICMP DoS attack traffic, you can mitigate this attack by
configuring an extended access list that blocks ICMP traffic from these address and applying it to the
interface that is closest to the point that the traffic is entering your network.
Configure NetFlow Filtering and Sampling Example

This example configuration contains the configuration commands required to use NetFlow filtering and
sampling on the NetFlow router.
!
hostname Router

366
Where to Go Next
!
ip cef
!
flow-sampler-map icmp-dos-fs-map
!
!
class-map match-any icmp-dos-class-map
!
!
policy-map icmp-dos-policy-map
class icmp-dos-class-map
netflow-sampler icmp-dos-fs-map
!
no ip address
!
ip address 172.16.6.2 255.255.255.0
service-policy input icmp-dos-policy-map
!
ip address 172.16.7.1 255.255.255.0
ip flow egress
!
ip flow-capture ttl
!
ip flow-top-talkers
top 5
sort-by bytes
match class-map icmp-dos-class-map
!
access-list 101 permit icmp any host 172.16.10.2
!
end
Where to Go Next
See the "Additional References" section for links to configuration information about additional NetFlow
features and services.
Related Documents


367

NetFlow
With SCTP
Tasks for configuring the SNMP NetFlow MIB "Configuring SNMP and using the NetFlow MIB to
Monitor NetFlow Data"
Standards
Standards Title
There are no new or modified standards associated --
with this feature

368
Feature Information for Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow
MIBs
MIBs MIBs Link

There are no new or modified MIBs associated with To locate and download MIBs for selected
this feature. platforms, Cisco IOS releases, and feature sets, use
Cisco MIB Locator found at the following URL:
RFCs
RFCs Title
There are no new or modified RFCs associated with --
this feature.
Description Link
content.
Feature Information for Detecting and Analyzing Network

Threats With NetFlow
feature.

369
Feature Information for Detecting and Analyzing Network Threats With NetFlow
Table 67 Feature Information for NetFlow Layer 2 and Security Monitoring Exports

NetFlow Layer 2 and Security 12.3(14)T The NetFlow Layer 2 and
Monitoring Exports Security Monitoring Exports
feature enables the capture of
values from fields in Layer 3 and
Layer 2 of IP traffic for
accounting and security analysis.
capture, ip flow-export and
Support for capturing the value 12.4(2)T The fragment-offset keyword for
from the fragment offset field of the ip flow-capture command
IP headers added to NetFlow enables capturing the value of the
Layer 2 and Security Monitoring IP fragment offset field from the
Exports10 first fragmented IP datagram in a
flow.
NetFlow Top Talkers 12.3(11)T, This document references the Top

Talkers feature from the NetFlow
12.2(25)S
MIB and Top Talkers feature
documentation.
Top Talkers uses NetFlow
functionality to obtain
information regarding heaviest
traffic patterns and most-used
applications in the network.
introduced by this feature: cache-
timeout, ip flow-top-talkers,
match, show ip flow top-talkers,
sort-by, and top.
NetFlow Dynamic Top Talkers 12.4(4)T The NetFlow Dynamic Top

CLI Talkers CLI allows you to se an
overview of the traffic
characteristics on your router by
aggregating flows based on the
fields such as source IP address,
destination prefix, and so forth.
NetFlow Input Filters 12.3(4)T, 12.2(25)S This document references the

NetFlow Input Filters feature
from the NetFlow Filtering and
Sampling feature documentation.

370
Glossary

Random Sampled NetFlow 12.3(4)T, 12.2(18)S, 12.0(26)S This document references the
Random Sampled NetFlow
feature from the NetFlow
Filtering and Sampling feature
documentation.
Glossary
data flowset --A collection of data records that are grouped in an export packet.
export packet --A type of packet built by a device (for example, a router) with NetFlow services enabled.
The packet is addressed to another device (for example, the NetFlow Collection Engine). The packet
contains NetFlow statistics. The other device processes the packet (parses, aggregates, and stores
information about IP flows).
ports, and type-of-service, and the same interface on which flow is monitored. Ingress flows are associated
with the input interface, and egress flows are associated with the output interface.
flowset --A collection of flow records that follow the packet header in an export packet. A flowset contains
information that must be parsed and interpreted by the NetFlow Collection Engine. There are two types of
flowsets: template flowsets and data flowsets. An export packet contains one or more flowsets, and both
template and data flowsets can be mixed in the same export packet.
NetFlow --Cisco IOS accounting feature that maintains per-flow information.
NetFlow v9 --NetFlow export format Version 9. A flexible and extensible means of carrying NetFlow
template --Describes the layout of a data flowset.
template flowset --A collection of template records that are grouped in an export packet.

371

372

Setting Net Flow Cisco

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Setting Net Flow Cisco

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NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS

2012 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Cisco IOS NetFlow Overview 1

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Data Export Using the Version 9 Export Format 16

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Version 1 Data Export Format 46

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow AS Aggregation Scheme 75

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

Information About NetFlow BGP Next Hop Support 132

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

MPLS Label Stack 156

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

Verifying the NetFlow Multicast Accounting Configuration 184

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Main Cache Operation 284

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Top Talkers 329

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

Finding Feature Information, page 1

Finding Feature Information

Information About Cisco IOS NetFlow

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

The NetFlow Application

NetFlow Benefits Monitoring Analysis and Planning Security and

Network Application and User Monitoring

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

Denial of Service and Security Analysis

>Accounting and Billing

>NetFlow Data Storage and Data Mining

NetFlow Cisco IOS Packaging Information

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Main Cache Operation

NetFlow Data Capture

NetFlow Export Formats

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Operation Processing Order of NetFlow Features

NetFlow Preprocessing Features Filtering and Sampling

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

Table 1 NetFlow Preprocessing Features

Preprocessing Feature Brief Description Source for Concept and Task

Filtering Sets up a specific subset of See the "Using NetFlow Filtering

Table 2 NetFlow Advanced Features and Services

Feature or Service Brief Description Source for Concept and Task

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Postprocessing Features Aggregation Schemes and Export to

Table 3 NetFlow Postprocessing Features

Postprocessing Features Brief Description Source for Concept and Task

Export to multiple destinations Sets up identical streams of "Configuring NetFlow and

How to Configure Cisco IOS NetFlow

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

Configuration Examples for Cisco IOS NetFlow

Related Topic Document Title

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

Related Topic Document Title

MIBs MIBs Link

RFC 2460 Internet Protocol, Version 6 (IPv6) Specification

RFC 3954 Cisco Systems NetFlow Services Export Version 9

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T

NetFlow Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 12.4T